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Radford University Athletics

Home Of The RadFord Highlanders RadFord Highlanders
Samantha Reitz
Mark Godin
2
Radford Rad 3-7,3-7 Big South
3
Winner UNC Asheville UNC-A 6-5,6-5 Big South
Radford Rad
3-7,3-7 Big South
2
Final
3
UNC Asheville UNC-A
6-5,6-5 Big South
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Radford Rad 24 22 25 25 10 (2)
UNC Asheville UNC-A 26 25 18 21 15 (3)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Comeback Attempt Falls Just Short at UNC Asheville

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Radford (3-7, 3-7 BSC) battled back after dropping the first two sets against UNC Asheville (6-6, 6-6), forcing a fifth set before the comeback attempt ended just short of victory Friday afternoon.
 
The Highlanders dropped the first set to the Bulldogs despite leading by ten points just past the midway point. After the Bulldogs jumped out to a 3-0 lead, the Highlanders went on their first run of the day fueled by two kills by Emily Dykes. In a 4-4 tie Radford went on a 6-0 run to space out the lead with Samantha Reitz bringing down her first two kills of the game. At the 16-6 mark in the set, the Bulldogs stormed back on a 17-7 run to tie the set at 23 all. Kennedi Johnson's kill gave Radford the slight 24-23 edge, but UNC Asheville responded with three straight points to take the first set 26-24.
 
The second set of the match also went UNC Asheville's way after points were exchanged back and forth between the two teams. Neither team gained any real edge over the other until UNC Asheville used a 3-0 run to give themselves the 16-11 lead. Radford responded with a 6-1 run of it's own, though, as Reitz tallied two more kills to her total to make it 17 all. Despite recording 17 kills in the set, which was the most by either team in a single set, the Bulldogs would pull out set two late 25-22.
 
From there on Radford took control by winning the third set in strong fashion. Radford kicked their offensive production into high-gear with a game-high 63% attack percentage. The match started off similar to the second in both teams trading points until Radford used a 9-3 run to extend the game winning the set 25-18. During that 9-3 stretch, the Highlanders forced the Bulldogs into four attack errors while Johnson and Dykes added two kills each to their totals.

Despite the Bulldogs making it closer late, the Highlanders were able to continue their strong play into the fourth set. Radford jumped out to a 13-6 lead and held it with clean play on their way to a 25-21 fourth set victory and force the fifth set. Reitz added a whopping seven kills in the set and at one point recorded three straight kills.

UNC Asheville grabbed a 3-1 lead in the fifth set and carried that lead to the end to win the game. Radford showed fight however, with Johnson knocking down three kills to keep Radford close at 8-5. Reitz added two more kills at the tail-end of the set but ultimately it was UNC Asheville who claimed the fifth set 15-10 and avoided the reverse-sweep.

Reitz recorded a single-game high and led both sides of competition in kills recording 24 which is by far the most this season since she recorded 13 against Presbyterian earlier this season. Johnson (12 kills) and Dykes (11 kills) also added personal single-game highs in kills. The Highlanders also had an advantage in blocks recording nine to UNC Asheville's seven, with Johnson, Hailey Flowers, and Laila Wallace all recording four block assists each. Flowers and Grace Green paced the Highlanders on the defensive front, with Flowers totaling 16 digs and Green leading the team with 17.

Never count the Highlanders out of a game this season as this is the fourth time they've battled and seen a game go into five sets. All four of the five-set contests have come within the Highlanders last six matches. To compare to a full season, the Highlanders had just five total contests go five sets in 2019 over 26 games.
 
Up Next
Radford returns to the Dedmon Center for their last two home matches of the year against Winthrop.
 
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.
 
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