For the second consecutive match, the High Point Panther volleyball squad dropped the opening game then rallied to earn a 3-1 victory over a Big South opponent. HPU posted a 23-30, 30-25, 30-21, 30-18 road win at Radford on Saturday afternoon.

The Panthers (10-6, 2-1 Big South) have now won six of their last seven matches and have posted an 8-3 record on their current 12-match month long road swing. With the win over Radford (3-9, 0-3 Big South), High Point completed a weekend sweep of Big South opponents for the first time in program history.

"This was another great win in an historic weekend for our program," said HPU head coach Chad Esposito. "It says a great deal about the heart and dedication of our players to earn back-to-back road wins in the Big South in less than 24 hours. I thought we had a tremendous performance from the entire team and I am extremely proud of our accomplishments."

Radford opened up the first game with a high level of intensity. The two squads battled back and forth in a game that featured nine ties and five lead changes. A determined Highlander squad gained the early edge thanks to a strong .250 team hitting percentage in their 30-23 victory.

High Point regrouped in the second stanza taking an early advantage that they would never relinquish. HPU evened the score at 1-1 with a 30-25 victory due in part to a solid .222 hitting performance. Game three saw the Panthers and Highlanders knot the score five times, but HPU never fell behind en route to the 30-21 win.

"Radford opened the match with a great deal of emotion," added Esposito. "I challenged our team after the first game to match that level of intensity. I thought we did a great job of weathering Radford's early surge then battling back and taking care of business at the end."

The Panthers dominated the action in the deciding game holding Radford to just a .048 offensive showing while connecting at over a .500 clip themselves. HPU tallied 19 kills with just two hitting errors for a .515 hitting percentage in the fourth stanza.

Sophomore Jamie Kaufman finished with her ninth double-double of the season tallying a team high 15 kills and also 16 digs. Freshman Ashley Mellott posted 13 kills and senior Michelle Feiser added 11 kills as part of her Big South leading six triple-double which also included 23 assists and 10 digs.

Freshman setter Lauren Hatch also had a double-double finishing with 21 assists and 11 digs. Senior Jenelle Stouffer led the Panther back row with 18 digs and Whitney Kaltenegger recorded 10 digs to give HPU five players in double figures.

Radford's Elizabeth Aldredge led all hitters with 17 kills and Rachel Newton paced the Highlander defense with 22 digs.

High Point will conclude their road journey this Wednesday night with a match at Davidson. HPU is slated to host a pair of Big South home matches next weekend against UNC Asheville (Saturday) and Birmingham-Southern (Sunday).