NEWBERRY — The Newberry College volleyball team (5-3, 0-0 SAC) closed out the Newberry College Volleyball Invitational with a pair of wins versus the University of West Alabama Tigers and the Southern Wesleyan University Warriors.
The Wolves jumped out to a quick 3-0 thanks to errors from the Tigers and kept the momentum strong. Kills from both sophomore Baylor Herlehy (Auburn, Calif.) and freshman Kate Brown (Platte City, Mo.) kept it rolling for the Wolves as they jumped out to a 10-2 start. The Wolves did not let up in the set, cruising to 25-9 victory to take the first set.
The sides went back and forth to start the second set, the Tigers jumping out to a 7-4 start over the Wolves. Newberry answered back quickly, with back-to-back kills from Herlehy and multiple kills gave the Wolves momentum, putting them up 10-7 in the set. They maintained the lead throughout the remainder of the second set, winning 25-17.
West Alabama came out hot in the set, jumping out to a 15-9 lead halfway through over the Wolves. Kills from the duo of Brown and Herlehy help the Wolves keep close throughout the set. Tied at 18, kills from freshman Samantha Shaffer (Belle Isle, Fla.) and senior Elizabeth Ober (Houston, Texas) put the Wolves up 21-18 late. However, the run end and the Tiger eventually closed out the set on a 5-0 run to take the third set, 25-22.
Each team kept the start of the fourth set close, not letting one another get too far ahead of the other. With a 9-7 lead, Newberry cruised away on a 16-1 run, taking advantage of many errors from the Tigers, running away with a 25-8 victory in the fourth set to with the match.
Brown led the team with 17 kills, followed by senior Avery Webb (Florence) who had 24 assists to lead the Wolves.
The Wolves got out to a hot start in the second game, showcases by many kills from Brown and Shaffer. Late points by Warriors tried to spark a comeback in the set, but it was too much to overcome, with the Wolves cruising to a first set victory, 25-8.
The second set saw the teams stay very close to each other, with a slight edge to the Wolves. Shaffer and Herlehy had multiple kills that gave the Wolves a 15-9 lead midway through the set. A surge from the Warriors brought them back within two of the Wolves, but senior Katie Ullsperger (Lexington) gave them a huge kill. Followed by errors from Southern Wesleyan brought back the spark to give the Wolves a 25-19 win in the second set.
The sides remained close to start the third set. Errors from the Warriors a kill from freshman Gabby Warren (Easley) pushed the Wolves ahead to a 11-6 lead early on. The Warriors kept clawing back at the Wolves, but back-to-back kills from Herlehy and junior Taylor Hall (McDonough, Ga.) ended the final set, giving the Wolves a 25-20 victory in the third set.
Both Brown and Shaffer led the team with 12 kills, with Webb having 19 assists to lead the Wolves, followed by sophomore Paige Patrick (Lewisville, Tex.) with 18 assists.