Senior Ashley Mellott posted a game-high 15 kills as the High Point University volleyball team defeated Radford, 3-0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-17) on Tuesday night in Peters Hall on the campus of Radford University. The Panthers improve to 22-4 and 10-1 in Big South play while the Highlanders fall to 8-14 and 3-9 in the League. High Point moves back into a tie for first place with Liberty.
Mellott hit 40-percent on the night to lead the Panthers. Audie Gonzalez added eight kills while Stephanie Wallin tallied six. Kristina Taylor had 33 assists and Julie Hershkowitz recorded nine digs.
For the Highlanders Jessica Sullivan and Laura Waddell each had six kills. Kiley Kent recorded 21 assists and Katelyn Meeks had 10 digs.
"Very pleased with the way we performed tonight especially on the road," said High Point University head coach Chad Esposito. "We came out with the right energy and intensity and was able to take control early. We hit extremely well tonight, especially our outsides in Ashley Mellott and Audie Gonzalez. It easily kept them from being able to go on runs. We also did a great job of hitting our serving targets, causing them to get out of system quickly."
In the first set the two teams kept the score close early and were tied at seven. But High Point went on a 9-3 run over the next rallies to pull ahead 16-10. The Highlanders looked to make a run and closed the gap to 17-13, but the Panthers closed out the set outscoring RU 8-4 to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
Radford took an early lead in the second set, but High Point tied the set at 11 each. The Panthers kept going and went on an 11-2 run to take a 23-13. Radford persisted with a run of its own to pull within five at 23-19. A kill from Mellott on the next rally would give High Point set point while an attack error for the Highlanders gave HPU the point to take set two.
High Point came out strong in the third set, taking a quick 6-1 lead. The Panthers led throughout the set and went up by as many as eight at 21-13. High Point rolled to the win in set three with match point coming off a kill by Gonzalez.
"We have to keep our focus especially on the road over these next couple of matches and take each match one at a time," Esposito said. "Try to win as many conference matches as we can to close out the regular season."
The Panthers will be back in action this weekend when they make the annual "beach trip." High Point will face Charleston Southern on Friday, Oct. 31 at 7:00 p.m. followed by a 4:00 p.m. match on Saturday at Coastal Carolina.
