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Radford University Athletics

Home Of The RadFord Highlanders RadFord Highlanders
RyleeSloss
Rob Simmons
3
Winner N.C. Central NCCU 3-7,0-0 MEAC
1
Radford Rad 3-10,0-0 Big South
Winner
N.C. Central NCCU
3-7,0-0 MEAC
3
Final
1
Radford Rad
3-10,0-0 Big South
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
N.C. Central NCCU 25 28 14 25 (3)
Radford Rad 22 26 25 23 (1)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Highlanders Fall Short in Four Tight Sets Against North Carolina Central

RADFORD, Va. – The Radford volleyball program played in a match that was tight throughout and unfortunately came up short in a 3-1 final against North Carolina Central Monday night.
 
KEY STATS
  • Rylee Sloss and Aubrey Hatch led the team in kills with 13 each.
  • Lea Gage served up a season-high four aces.
  • The visiting Eagles committed 14 service errors, compared to the Highlanders' seven.
  • Radford hit strong through sets one, two and three, but their final attack percentage was pulled down by a -.188 performance in set four.
 
PLAY BY PLAY
Radford was forced to play behind early in Monday night's match as the visiting North Carolina Central immediately opened up an 8-2 lead. The Highlanders' offense would rally back, behind multiple kills from Sloss, to eventually tie the back up at 11-11. Attack and serving errors hurt at the midpoint of the set, though, as the Eagles reopened a 20-13 advantage.
 
Out of a timeout, Radford didn't go out quietly. A 6-0 run behind a multitude of kills from Olivia Ryno and Hatch pulled Radford to down just 20-18. The Highlanders came as close as 23-22, but the set slipped away to the Eagles 25-23.
 
In set two the Highlanders started better early to take an 8-3 lead. The Eagles hit well, though, out of a timeout to eventually put the set back to a near tie at 11-10. Radford led for a majority of the set and was up 21-17. A 6-1 run by North Carolina Central gave them a late lead. Another set would eventually slip away, as North Carolina Central won set two 28-26 and took a 2-0 lead.
 
In the most lopsided set of the night, Radford dominated to keep their hopes alive. The Highlanders burst out to another 7-1 lead behind serving errors from the Eagles and some kills by Ryno and Lea Gage. The Eagles would rally to tighten the set at 10-7, but Radford got another big extended run to balloon their lead back to 18-11. The Highlanders scored the last five points of the set with three aces for the 25-14 set three finish.
 
Now down 2-1, Radford and North Carolina Central locked into another tight affair in set four. The Highlanders would play from behind for most of the set and weren't quite able to string together another run. When all was said and done, the Eagles held on to the fourth set 25-23 and finished the 3-1 final against the Highlanders.
 
UP NEXT
Radford continues their streak of home matches when they open conference play this upcoming Friday, September 22nd against High Point at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.

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).
 
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