Boxscore

RALEIGH, N.C. - Saint Augustine's College got off to an encouraging start, but Mount Olive rallied in the fourth and fifth sets to pull out a 3-2 non-conference volleyball victory over the Lady Falcons Tuesday (Sept. 27) at Emery Gymnasium.

The defeat spoiled a terrific game from  Kiesha Parris (Sr./St. Catherine, Jamaica). The right side hitter finished with 18 kills and a .324 hitting percentage. Outside hitter Kathryn Tokarski (Sr./Saskatchewan, Canada) added 12 kills and 11 digs for the Lady Falcons, who held a 2-1 lead going into the fourth set.

That's when Mount Olive turned the tide. Led by the net play of Erica Conner and Carly White, the Trojans (5-9 overall) took the fourth set 25-20. The Trojans dominated the fifth set, winning 15-5 to send the Lady Falcons (6-11) to their fourth consecutive loss. Conner finished with 19 kills and the 6-foot-4 White added 16 kills for the Trojans, who snapped a five-match losing skid. The duo combined for 10 blocks.

Setter Roxanne Smith (Sr./St. Catherine, Jamaica) collected 35 assists while Victoria Davis (So./San Diego, Calif.) and Abeje Carrington (Jr./St. George, Barbados) both had four blocks for the Lady Falcons, who must regroup Friday (Sept. 30) in another home match against Lees-McRae starting at 6 p.m.

The Lady Falcons played before their home fans for the second time this season. Energized by the crowd support, they jumped out to a 25-17 victory in the first set. The Trojans bounced back to win the second set 25-14 but the Lady Falcons claimed the third set 25-19. The Lady Falcons led early in the  fourth set before the Trojans rallied.

The difference in the match was the wide margin in kills for Mount Olive (56-39). They also had a better attack percentage (.208-.111) than the Lady Falcons.