Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

Radford University Athletics

Home Of The RadFord Highlanders RadFord Highlanders
TeamCelebrate
Rob Simmons
3
Winner Radford Rad 9-15,6-7 Big South
2
Charleston So. ChaSou 7-19,4-9 Big South
Winner
Radford Rad
9-15,6-7 Big South
3
Final
2
Charleston So. ChaSou
7-19,4-9 Big South
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Radford Rad 26 25 19 25 17 (3)
Charleston So. ChaSou 28 22 25 23 15 (2)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Volleyball Comes Back for 3-2 Win in Marathon Match at Charleston Southern

CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Radford volleyball program came back from down 2-1 to defeat Charleston Southern 3-2 in a pivotal conference match-up Saturday night.
 
KEY STATS
  • Both teams were required to dig deep as the match featured just one set decided by more than three points in a marathon meeting.
  • Radford hit .241 as a team. Katrina Miller led the efforts hitting .455 on 11 total attacks while Sophie Paspal also hit .345 on 29 total attacks.
  • Paspal (11), Olivia Flanagan (15), Aubrey Hatch (11) and Sierra Moore (10) all recorded 10+ kills.
  • While Charleston Southern finished the match with three more aces than Radford, it was the Highlanders who out-blocked the Buccaneers by a 10-8 margin.
  • Julia Slivka finished the match with 35 assists (second-most this season) while Rylee Sloss also collected 22.
 
PLAY BY PLAY
Saturday night's match showed signs of the eventual thriller to come early as both teams would trade points back and forth from the start. Radford would earn an early 7-2 edge thanks to kills from Alana Kolb, Paspal and Slivka. The Buccaneers fought back with a 5-1 run to even the set at 10-10.
 
Neither team would lead by more than a point from there until the set finished. Radford's offense came from a group of attackers including Kennedy Robinson, Sloss and Moore as the team tried to keep pace. Down 24-23, Radford got a 25-24 edge thanks to a kill by Moore and a Buccaneer error. Radford would give a point up but go back up 26-25, but a 3-0 run by Charleston Southern ended the set in their favor 28-26.
 
As the Highlanders have done all season, the team bounced back in the second set. Radford led early once again 5-1 thanks to some Buccaneers errors and kills from Paspal and Flanagan. Similar to the first set, the Buccaneers fought back to eventually even the set at eight-all.
 
Going back and forth, Radford got a crucial 3-0 run late thanks to kills from Slivka and Hatch to go from down 17-18 to up 20-18. Charleston Southern would strike back to take another brief lead, but it was the Highlanders who finished the set hot on a 3-1 run with an ace from Robinson and a kill from Paspal to win the second set 25-22.
 
Now even at one set each, it was Charleston Southern who would have their strongest set of the night to take a 2-1 lead in the match. The Buccaneers built a four-point lead early and despite multiple runs by the Highlanders, the hosts were able to pace ahead and eventually win the set by a 25-19 margin, the only set to be decided by more than three points.
 
Radford would again not give in and started the fourth set on a 3-1 run thanks to some Charleston Southern mistakes. Kills from Flanagan and Katrina Miller helped Radford pace ahead at 12-8 trying to take a commanding lead. Well-timed timeouts by Charleston Southern wouldn't let Radford pace too far ahead, but the Highlanders got another 4-1 run late thanks to Miller's offensive outburst to lead 21-15.
 
Charleston Southern had a 3-1 run late forcing a timeout by Radford leading just 23-19. Up 24-19, the Buccaneers scored four straight points forcing another Radford timeout. Hatch was able to come up clutch for the Highlanders with a big kill to finalize the set 25-23 in Radford's favor and force the winner-takes all.
 
Now in their second straight five-set match on the road, Radford needed to dig deep to try and pull out the win. The Buccaneers began the set with a 4-2 lead, but Radford clawed back with a 3-0 run getting kills from Taryin Roberts and Moore to lead 5-4. Both teams traded points until Charleston Southern got a 3-0 run to take what seemed to be a decisive lead at 12-9.
 
Radford regrouped with a timeout and came out on fire with a 3-0 run to tie the match at 12-12. After a Charleston Southern timeout and a 2-0 run by the hosts, Radford was down to their final chance in match point down 14-12. Incredibly, the Highlanders pulled out a 3-0 run  to lead 15-14. Kills from Flanagan and Moore would seal the comeback effort as Radford won the fifth set 17-15 and the match 3-2.
 
NOTABLES
  • The three-set victory is Radford's second this season in seven instances, both wins coming on the road.
  • Radford sweeps the season series against Charleston Southern, their first time doing so since the 2017 season. Radford's last win in Charleston, S.C. was also in that 2017 season.
  • Radford's .247 hitting percentage is their best since their Big South opener match, also against Charleston Southern.
  • The team's 66 kills are second-most in a single match this season after totaling 63 just last night at Presbyterian.
 
AROUND THE BIG SOUTH
  • High Point got back in the win column with a 3-0 sweep over Presbyterian.
  • USC Upstate worked quickly in a 3-0 victory over Gardner-Webb.
  • Winthrop also swept their opponent UNC Asheville in a 3-0 finish.
 
UP NEXT
Radford's final test before the Big South Tournament comes next weekend at home when they will play host to High Point on November 15th at the Dedmon Center at 6 p.m. The match will also be the Highlanders senior day and will be streamed on ESPN+.

FOLLOW RADFORD VOLLEYBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on the Radford volleyball team follow @RadfordVB on X and Instagram or Radford Volleyball on Facebook.
Print Friendly Version