Box Score Greensboro, N.C. - The Greensboro College Volleyball team began USA South Conference play on Wednesday night as they made the short trip to Salem College to take on the Spirits.

The Pride would be entering the match looking to return to their winning ways after a difficult trip to Bridgewater College last time out. The Spirits would enter play with an impressive 6-3 record and the Pride would need to bring their "A" game to town to earn the victory.

The Pride stumbled out of the gate in Set 1. Finding themselves behind 10-4 early in the set, the Pride were unable to mount a serious challenge and lost 25-16 to begin the match.

However, Coach Troup and his staff obviously had an impact on the team during the break as they came out for Set 2 with a much different energy and attitude. The Pride jumped out quickly 10-3 behind some power plays by Jade Vrobel and would continue the Set 2 domination as Peyton Shiflet would take over with her athleticism and strength to propel the Pride to all even with an impressive 25-16 victory.

Set 3 would be pivotal as both squads would be looking to take control of the match. The Pride would capitalize on their momentum as they would jump to a quick lead as Taylor Cotie and Kelci Brooks would become forces at the net.

The Pride would be challenged as their 18-11 lead would evaporate thanks to a Spirits' 8-1 run that would knot the score at 19 as the intensity would increase. The teams would continue to trade points as the Pride would find themselves facing set point as they would trail 26-25. But gutsy plays, including a kill by Kelci Brooks (Assisted by Lauren Mantel), a Spirit misplay, and a set ending kill by Kantley McKown (Assisted by Jaylyn Templeton), would swing the match toward the Pride as they took the set and match control with a thrilling 28- 26 victory.

Set 4 would begin with a 6-6 deadlock, but the Pride would seize control as their "power game" would prevail as an 11-4 run would stretch the lead. The Pride would go on to easily win Set 4 and the match with an impressive 25-17 victory to secure the conference opener. A pair of emphatic kills by Kantley McKown (Assisted by Jaylyn Templeton) would seal the deal as the Pride would depart Winston-Salem with a perfect start to the 2022 conference schedule.

Stat leaders include:
Kills- McKown- 13 Cotie- 11 Shiflet -10 Brooks- 9 Vrobel- 8
Assists- Templeton 48
Digs- Mantel- 17 Brooks- 16 McKown- 12 Templeton- 11 Shiflet- 9

Head Coach Kevin Troup had these thoughts on the comeback victory over the Spirits: "We had a sluggish start to the match on Wednesday night. Fortunately, we were able to get our offense going in the second set. Defensively we were scrappy and made plays. It is always great to start conference play with a road win."

The Greensboro College Volleyball team will next play at historic Hanes Gym on Friday, September 23rd as they battle conference foes North Carolina Wesleyan University at 3:00PM and Pfeiffer University at 7:00PM.

For more information on Greensboro College Volleyball, please visit www.greensborocollegesports.com