RADFORD Va. – The High Point University Panthers clinched its fifth consecutive Big South Regular Season Title on Friday with a 3-0 sweep over Radford University on the road. The Panthers finished the regular season with a record of 13-1 in league play, while registering 10 sweeps along the way.
In the matchup with the Highlanders, High Point was led by
Dylan Maberry with 15 kills and nine digs.
Allie Gray dished out 40 assists to record her third game this season with 40 or more assists. On the attack, HPU out hit Radford with 48 kills to 25 from the Highlanders with a .320 hit percentage.
It was a close battle between the two teams in set one. High Point went down 5-3 before gaining three straight points from three different locations on the front line to take its first true lead of the match at 6-5. Radford tied the set at 12 all and tied it two more times before HPU set on a 5-0 run to go up 21-18.
The run was led by the duo of Maberry and
Kea Whillock. Whillock started each point off on the serve and registered two aces while Maberry knocked in three kills. The Panthers went up 24-20, but a three point push from the Highlanders closed the gap to one. Élodie Lalonde finished the set with a kill to earn the 25-23 first set win.
In set two, High Point took some time to get going. After trailing 8-7, the Panthers trekked on a 7-1 run with the combination of High Point kills and Radford errors. HPU kept pushing and reached its largest lead of the set at 23-16. Radford tried to make a run but the Panthers sealed the deal with kills from
Kennedy Louisell and
Jayde Shelton for the 25-19 win.
High Point steadily dominated in the third set, taking an early 12-9 advantage. Radford closed the gap to 13-12, but High Point turned up the heat and went on another 7-1 run for a 17-12 lead. The Panthers coasted and cruised to a 25-18 victory with the help of two kills from Louisell and another service ace from Whillock. Whillock tied her career-high with four service aces in the match.
Up Next:
High Point prepares to host the Big South Volleyball Championships next weekend, beginning on Friday November 22 at the Millis Center. The Panthers received the No. 1 seed going into the tournament.
#GoHPU
