Radford, Va. - - -The Radford women's volleyball team moved into sole possession of second-place in the Big South Conference standings after sweeping the Winthrop Eagles on "Dig Pink Day" at the Dedmon Center. The Highlanders, who recorded their third straight victory, improved to 16-3 overall and 8-2 in the league. It was their second straight sweep of the Eagles this season.
 
Highlander junior Stephanie Neast recorded a match-high 13 kills on 23 attempts and hit .391 for the match. Senior Valerie Gonzalez was also in double-digits with 10 kills and added six digs. Senior Haley Kleespies kept the offense humming as she distributed 37 assists along with seven digs. Freshman Grace Green came up with a team-high 11 digs and added a pair of service aces. The duo of junior Mallory McKnight and Neast combined for nine assisted blocks as Radford controlled the net.
 
FIRST SET
Radford never trailed in the opening set and pulled away late to claim a 25-19 victory. Gonzalez recorded five kills to lead the offense and also contributed a team-best five digs. The Highlanders took an 11-7 advantage after a kill by senior Amaya Rousseau, however, Winthrop (11-11, 7-3 Big South) managed to close within 12-11 after a service ace. Freshman Kylie Tuxford kept the visitors at bay with a kill off a feed by Kleespies and then McKnight got involved with a winner to make it 14-11. Once again, Winthrop made a run as they were able to close within 16-15 but the Highlanders took control from that point as they rattled off four consecutive points, aided by a pair of Gonzalez kills, to widen their lead to 20-15.  Rousseau eventually closed out the frame with an emphatic kill of a nice set-up by Kleespies.
 
SECOND SET
Neast was sensational in the second set as she hit a sizzling .857 en route to six kills. The Highlanders, who turned in a .440 attacking percentage in the set, led from start-to-finish and cruised to a 25-11 victory. Winthrop was within 10-9 after an attack error by the Highlanders, however, the hosts scored four straight points and the Eagles could never recover. Tuxford and Neast ignited the stretch with back-to-back kills and Winthrop committed consecutive attack errors to spot Radford a 14-9 lead.  The Eagles recorded the next point but the Highlanders kept the pressure on as they scored five straight to extend their lead to 19-10. Winthrop recorded four straight errors at the end of the run. Neast then exploded for four kills to put the set away.
 
THIRD SET
The Highlanders were in comeback mode for the only time in the match as they recovered to defeat the Eagles by a 25-19 count. After taking an 8-7 advantage, the visitors outscored Radford by a 10-6 margin to take their largest lead of the day at 17-14. Radford kept their composure and answered with six consecutive points to move ahead, 20-17. Winthop recorded four straight hitting miscues and Green served up two straight aces to account for the scoring. The hosts eventually closed the match out as McKnight, Gonzalez and Neast recorded kills.
 
MOMENT THAT MATTERED
Holding a slight 16-15 edge in the first set, Radford scored four straight points and the visitors were never able to recover. Gonzalez had two kills and Neast also picked up a winner during the critical spurt. 
 
STAT OF THE MATCH
As a team, Radford recorded a .223 hitting percentage on 103 total attacks. Winthrop had come into the match as the fifth-best team in the Big South with a .181 hitting mark. However, the Highlanders limited the Eagles to a paltry .010 mark (23 kills, 22 errors, 98 attempts).
 
UP NEXT
The Highlanders travel to Campbell and Hampton next Friday and Saturday.
 
FOLLOW RADFORD VOLLEYBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on the Radford volleyball team follow @RadfordVB on Twitter and Instagram or Radford Volleyball on Facebook.