Hawks Fall In Four At Berea

BEREA, Ky.- Coming off their crucial conference victory at home against Belhaven, Huntingdon Volleyball traveled to the Bluegrass state, opening their weekend with a non-conference matchup against Berea College. Earlier in the season, the Hawks walked away with a 3-1 victory against the Mountaineers in a neutral site contest. This time however, Berea managed to get the best of Huntingdon, taking down the Hawks in four sets. 

How it happened

The first set brought about the highly-contested tone that would been seen throughout the contest, as the Mountaineers grabbed a 1-0 lead with a 26-24 victory. The Hawks led early, 7-5 following a kill from Morgan Suggs, but lost their lead following a 6-1 Berea run. The two teams traded blows coming down the stretch, but the Mountaineers managed to remain in control, scoring on the final two serves to take the first set. Both offenses were active at the net, as Huntingdon picked up 14 kills to Berea's 16, but ultimately the Hawks one extra error to Mountaineers proved to be the difference. 

Berea doubled down in the second set, claiming it 25-19 to extend their lead to 2-0. Both squads saw a relatively low amount of offensive production in the set, each picking up just 9 kills, but Huntingdon's 11 errors to 4 for the Mountaineers allowed Berea to cement their control. 

Not to be outdone however, the Hawks battled back for a 28-26 set three victory. Led by the trio of Morgan Suggs, Lily VanDyke, and Kinsley Martin, the Hawks held a 15-12 lead midway through the set, extending it to 23-19 following VanDyke's ace, but the Mountaineers stormed back to even things at 24. Suggs and A'Kirra McElveen came up clutch when it mattered most, recording the final three points to keep the Hawks alive. 

Following a drawn-out third set, Berea shut down the Hawks attack in the fourth set, walking away with a 25-15 win to claim the match. Huntingdon's offense stifled, recording just five kills to go along with their five errors in the set, putting them down 17-7 coming down the stretch. Berea, catching a second wind with 14 kills, led through the duration of the set to claim victory. 

The Hawks return to action on Saturday, October 11th, facing Asbury and Piedmont in a Collegiate Conference of the South tri-match in Wilmore, Kentucky. Matches are set for 1:00 and 3:00 PM CT.