Box Score LYNCHBURG, VA — The young Randolph College volleyball team showed a lot of heart Tuesday evening, battling back twice from being down a game to force the decisive fifth set. Virginia Wesleyan College would exhibit their experience though, taking the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) thriller in five sets in action from the Randolph Athletic and Dance (RAD) Center.
Virginia Wesleyan won the match with scores of 25-9, 23-25, 25-18, 23-25 and 15-13. For the host WildCats, it was only the second home loss of the season, and the first five-set loss of the year in the RAD Center.
The WildCats (11-9/2-5 ODAC) proved a lot to themselves and to the rest of the conference with tonight's match. Randolph hadn't taken a set off the Marlins since the 2004 season, and tonight it was within two points of taking the match in the fifth set as the game was tied at 13. The Marlins (10-11/4-3 ODAC) chalked up the last two points of the match to pull out the epic contest.
Randolph started the match out slow, falling in game one 25-9. The WildCats battled back to take the second set 25-23. As the game was tied at 23, Randolph got a huge block from juniors Sam Sublett (Bedford, VA/Staunton River) and Megan Wheatley (Sperryville, VA/Rappahannock Co.). The WildCats picked up the win on a hitting error on the next point.
In the third set, VWC again regained the momentum, thanks to the serving of Kala Guy and the five kills in the game from Taylor Allen. Showing resolve, the WildCats again fought back with a 25-23 win in game four. Down 10-8, sophomore Sydney Henson (Winston-Salem, NC/Ronald Reagan) had nine service points to put Randolph up 15-11.
The Marlins pulled even at 23 again, but after an attack error from VWC, Sublett chalked up one of her team-best nine kills on the evening to take the match the distance. In a back and forth fifth set, Randolph took an early 4-1 edge but Virginia Wesleyan rattled off five of the next six points to take a 6-5 lead. Randolph forged back ahead with a 5-1 run to make the score 10-7.
Randolph led for much of the set until VWC tied the game at 12. After the teams exchanged points to make the scored 13-13, VWC earned the final two points highlighted by a kill from Allen, her 12th of the night.
"I was very, very proud of them to come back and battle," said head coach Johnathan Willis. "It showed not just us but other squads that we're a good team. Obviously, the outcome wasn't what we wanted, but I'm still very proud of this team and how hard they battled."
Sublett had nine kills on a season-high 29 attacks for Randolph as well as four assisted blocks, while Grayce Darden (Martinsville, VA/Martinsville) added eight kills and three blocks. First-year Shana Nelson (Columbia, MD/Wilde Lake) had eight kills and six blocks for Randolph, which hit .119 on the night.
First-year Kerry McMichael (Westminster, SC/West Oak) continued to show her stuff, racking up 28 helpers on the night. McMichael moved into 10th for assists in a season with 562, and trails Ann-Marie Everett's ninth-best assist spot by 50 now. First-year libero Lexi Harrington (Clemmons, NC/West Forsyth) had her best day as a collegiate, racking up a career and game-best of 19 digs.
Randolph had 10 blocks on the night, which was its second-best blocking game of the season. VWC's Kala Guy had a huge game for the Marlins, posting 17 kills, 13 digs, six aces and a pair of blocks. Kerry Johnson also had 10 kills, while Allie Bal had a double-double of 23 assists and 10 digs. Erin Paton chalked up 16 digs in the win.
The WildCats will now look forward to Dig Pink! Night Friday evening in RAD Center as they entertain the Generals of Washington & Lee University at 6:30 p.m.
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