Danville, VA — Greensboro College volleyball (2-1) defeated Roanoke College (1-1) 3-2 on Friday, winning 25-15, 25-27, 21-25, 25-19, and 15-13.
Greensboro built a 7-3 lead in the opening set behind consecutive
Larkin Baxley kills and a block by
Dilynn Norris and Baxley, but Roanoke worked back to tie it at 8-8 on a service ace. Greensboro moved back in front with kills from
Skylar Rokov,
Payton Shiflet and Norris, along with a
Madison Bozarth ace, before Roanoke cut the gap to 15-13.
Morgan Mayfield's kill put Greensboro up 16-13, and Shiflet served the next eight points, including three aces, while
Abigail Leo and Baxley added kills during the run to 24-13. Roanoke scored twice from there, but Norris ended the set with a kill for a 25-15 Greensboro win.
After Roanoke moved ahead 4-2, Greensboro pulled even on kills by
Enjoli Allen and Mayfield, then went in front 5-4 on a Shiflet service ace. Roanoke answered with five straight points, including two Cassidy Zalinski aces, to lead 9-5, but Greensboro came back with two
Kayla Yonker kills, a
Lily Burson ace and a Roanoke attack error to tie the set at 9-9. Greensboro later built a 14-11 lead on Leo's kill, while Roanoke moved from a 16-16 tie to an 18-16 edge before a service error and another Yonker kill brought Greensboro even at 18-18. Leo's late kill put Greensboro up 23-21, and Shiflet kills gave Greensboro set points at 24-23 and 25-24, but Roanoke answered both and closed the set with a Zarah Love kill and a Teagan Hubble ace for a 27-25 win.
After Roanoke built a 7-2 lead, Greensboro worked back into the set with consecutive
Payton Wright kills during a stretch that cut the margin to 8-6. Greensboro later turned a 10-8 deficit into an 11-10 lead behind kills from Norris and Rokov, and after Roanoke tied it at 11-11, the Pride moved back ahead 13-11. Roanoke answered with four straight points for a 15-13 lead, but Greensboro responded with a five-point run that included a Rokov kill, two Baxley kills and a Norris kill to go in front 18-15. Roanoke then scored seven straight points, including five service aces during Cassidy Zalinski's turn at serve, to take a 22-18 lead, and it held off late Greensboro kills from Shiflet, Norris and Leo to take the set 25-21.
After an even start that reached 6-6, Roanoke scored three straight points to move in front 9-6. Greensboro answered with nine consecutive points, beginning with a Roanoke service error before
Grace Young served through a run that included a Leo kill, two Roanoke bad sets, a Bozarth kill, back-to-back Young aces and a Shiflet kill for a 15-9 lead. Roanoke worked back within 19-18, but kills by Baxley and Rokov pushed Greensboro back ahead 21-18. After Roanoke got to 21-19, Greensboro finished the set with four straight points, including a Bozarth kill and two assisted blocks involving Leo, Shiflet and Rokov, to take the set 25-19.
After Roanoke went ahead 2-1, Rokov tied the fifth set with a kill from Baxley and Mayfield served consecutive aces to put Greensboro in front 4-2. Greensboro stayed ahead through the middle points, with Norris, Wright, Baxley and Leo providing kills as the score moved to 10-7. Roanoke kept the set tight with kills from Kaci Morrison and Olivia Horneman, and a Cassidy Zalinski ace that brought it to 12-11, but Shiflet's kill gave Greensboro the next point. Karly Shipe scored for Roanoke before Norris' kill from Burson made it 14-12, and after a Greensboro attack error, a Roanoke service error closed Greensboro's 15-13 set win.
Shiflet finished with 11 kills, four service aces and a team-high 16.0 points. Norris matched Shiflet with 11 kills, hit .588 and added two block assists. Mayfield recorded a team-high 25 digs while adding five assists and two service aces. Bozarth handed out a team-high 24 assists and collected nine digs.
Up Next:
Greensboro faces off against Averett University on Saturday, Sept. 5, at 3 pm in the final game of the Cougar Classic.
Stay up to Date:
Stay up to date with all Greensboro College volleyball news, updates, and more, follow the Pride on Instagram (gc_athletics), X (@GC_Pride), and Facebook (Greensboro College Athletics).
