App State volleyball split the weekend series on Oct 26 and 27 against Old Dominion, winning the first match 3-0 and losing the second 1-3.
The first set was knotted early at five with kills from freshman right side Ava Leahy and sophomore middle blocker Maya Winterhoff. The Mountaineers then took a 15-9 lead due to kills from junior middle blocker Lauren Pledger and junior outside hitter Lulu Ambrose.
The Black and Gold maintained control of the set and won 25-12. The lowest point total the Mountaineers allowed in a set since Sept. 1, when they held Bethune-Cookman to 11 points.
To begin the second set, the Monarchs took a 7-4 lead. A 4-0 App State run highlighted by an ace from redshirt freshman setter Katie Cruise and a pair of kills from Winterhoff gave the Black and Gold a 13-11 advantage. Ambrose and Pledger recorded a pair of kills adding to the Mountaineer lead, 21-17.
App State went on to win the second set 25-19. The Mountaineers started with a pair of aces from sophomore libero Kenady Roper to jump to a 9-6 lead. The Mountaineer lead extended to 17-9 due to a 5-0 run.
Winterhoff recorded a kill and solo block to give the Black and Gold a 23-14 lead. App State continued to remain in control by winning the set 25-16 and the match 3-0.
In the second match, fifth-year senior McCall Denny recorded her 1,000th kill, but it wouldn’t be enough as the Mountaineers fell to the Monarchs 1-3.
A pair of aces from sophomore libero Alyssa McBean helped propel the Mountaineers to a 12-5 lead to begin the first set. Kills from multiple Mountaineers extended the lead to 18-11 allowing the Black and Gold to take the first set 25-17.
A kill from Denny gave the Mountaineers a 3-1 lead over ODU, but the Monarchs took a 13-6 lead. Kills from Leahy and Ambrose shrunk the deficit to 13-10.
Old Dominion maintained momentum and won the second set 25-15. In the third set, the Monarchs took an early 11-8 lead despite an ace from McBean. App State responded with kills from Denny and tightened up the set at 11-10.
Three kills from Ambrose gave back the Mountaineers the lead with a 17-15 advantage. Kills from Grevengoed and Denny extended the lead to 22-19. However, a late Monarch push helped them capture the set 26-24.
Old Dominion opened up the final set with a 5-2 advantage, but shrunk to 6-4 as Winterhoff recorded a kill.
The Monarchs extended their lead to 12-4, until a 6-0 Mountaineer run with kills from Winterhoff and Leahy shrunk the deficit to 14-12.
The Monarchs held their lead and took the set 25-22 and the match 3-1.
The Mountaineers head to Statesboro, Georgia to face Georgia Southern Nov. 3-4. Friday’s match is slated for 6 p.m. and Saturday’s for 1 p.m. Both matches can be streamed on ESPN+.
