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Radford University Athletics

Home Of The RadFord Highlanders RadFord Highlanders
RyleeSloss
Ethan Neal
3
Winner Middle Tenn. MTSU 7-3,0-0 CUSA
1
Radford Rad 2-9,0-0 Big South
Winner
Middle Tenn. MTSU
7-3,0-0 CUSA
3
Final
1
Radford Rad
2-9,0-0 Big South
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Middle Tenn. MTSU 25 25 17 26 (3)
Radford Rad 20 23 25 24 (1)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Radford Battles Close Throughout, but Drops Match to Middle Tennessee

BLACKSBURG, Va. – The Radford volleyball program played in four incredibly competitive sets Thursday afternoon in their first match at the Virginia Tech Classic, falling to Middle Tennessee 3-1.
 
KEY STATS
  • Both Rylee Sloss (15 kills) and Aubrey Hatch (12 kills) continued their impressive weeks with their second straight matches in double figures kills.
  • Jackeline Nerro nearly missed another double-double, finishing the match with 18 assists and nine digs.
  • Radford out-blocked their opponent once again 10-6 with Taryn Roberts and Sloss leading the way combining for one solo and seven block assists.
 
PLAY BY PLAY
A sign of what was to come, the first set in Thursday's match with the Blue Raiders was tight throughout. Through the early stretch, neither team was able to build a large lead. Tied 6-6, Radford got an ace from Katrina Miller and kills from Sloss and Ryno to take the first major lead 9-6. Sloss would keep the Highlanders pacing ahead with another pair of kills, but an extended run into the media timeout saw Radford ahead just 15-14.
 
The Blue Raiders stayed hot out of the timeout and took their first commanding lead of the set at 18-15. Radford battled to keep it close thanks to some errors from Middle Tennessee but set one would slip away 25-20.
 
Set two saw the Highlanders get early points behind a kill from Taryn Roberts and ace from Jackeline Nerro as once again things remained knotted up. Up slightly at 8-7, Radford got a rally behind a block from Gabriela Smolenska and Rylee Sloss and kills from Sloss and Ryno that forced a timeout. The Highlanders kept rolling through the timeout, but some attack errors proved costly as the match quickly retied at 15-15.
 
Middle Tennessee's rally continued through the end of the second set. A late comeback attempt by the Highlanders behind two kills from Hatch would fall just short as the Blue Raiders took a 2-0 lead behind a 25-23 set two win.
 
The Highlanders looked to flip the script in set three and did just that, dominating throughout. Radford took a commanding 5-0 lead early with an ace from Miranda Howard and kills from Sloss and Roberts. Out of a timeout, Radford kept rolling as Roberts tallied a block, Ryno earned an ace, and Miller added a kill to go up 10-6.
 
Attack errors continued to pile up for the Blue Raiders while Radford kept a consistent attack behind Roberts  and Sloss to lead even further at 18-9. A brief rally by Middle Tennessee pulled things closer at 20-13, forcing a Radford timeout. The team was able to regroup to finish off the set in impressive fashion 25-17.
 
Radford jumped out to another lead in the fourth set 4-1 behind three errors from Middle Tennessee. Two kills by Hatch and another by Miller paced Radford ahead 10-6, but a run by the Blue Raiders cut into that lead and threw it back into a tight affair. Tied at 22-all, Radford wasn't able to close out the set as Middle Tennessee stole the fourth set late 26-24 and won the match 3-1.
 
UP NEXT
Radford will look to bounce back and close out the week when they take on the loser of Virginia Tech vs. ETSU tomorrow at 1 p.m. in Blacksburg, Va.

STAY SOCIAL WITH RADFORD VOLLEYBALL
For all the latest on Radford Volleyball, be sure to follow the team on X (@RadfordVB), Instagram (@radfordvb), and "like" the team's official Facebook Page (Radford Volleyball).
 
#RiseAndDefend
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