JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – High Point University volleyball opened game two of the Buccaneer Classic presented by Tri-Cities airport against East Tennessee State University on Saturday afternoon. After a dominant first and third sets, the Panthers fell to the Buccaneers in a competitive fifth set.
Two Panthers led the match with 12 kills apiece,
Maya Bukovcan and
Gabby Hill. Bukovcan hit over .600 on the day and Hill registered a season-high in kills.
Site: Freedom Hall
Score: High Point 2, East Tennessee State3
Records: High Point (2-5), ETSU (4-5)
How it Happened:
Freeland and Bukovcan were all over the net throughout the match, tracking the ball to keep it on ETSU's side of the court. The duo that switched out on the middle block combined for 21 kills and 10 blocks.
High Point rolled through set one, taking a 7-0 run early in the set with points scored from all areas of the offense. After leading 13-6, it did not take long for the Panthers to reach the 20-point mark and go up 20-10 with a Freeland kill. HPU cruised through the last five points and won set one by nine, 25-16.
ETSU rebounded in set two. Keeping it close through the first half of the set, HPU held a lead, 13-11 with a double block from Freeland and
Ella Grace Holloway. Following the big time block, ETSU went on a 7-0 run of their own. High Point soon trailed 23-15 and attempted to make a comeback with a three-point stretch but the Buccaneers tapped in two kills to take set two, 25-18.
The Panthers absolutely dominated in set three with multiple runs after going down 6-2 early to ETSU. HPU first bounced back with a 6-0 run that was sparked by a Hill kill on the outside, to lead 8-6. The second run was sparked by
Ryley Boyne who put down a shot with the perfect set up from
Allie Gray to go up 18-10.
Hill kept the Panthers ahead 23-15 but ETSU made it interesting by chipping away in each sequence to make it a one-point game at 23-22. Boyne put High Point within match point after crushing a kill but the Buccaneers did not let it end there and kept the set alive with a kill of their own. HPU's Bukovcan slammed a hit down to secure the set point and win 25-23 to go up 2-1 in the match.
In set four, High Point struggled to gain separation from the Buccaneers. After having a 13-12 advantage, HPU's attack fell in a slump resulting in the Panthers trailing 17-13. Picking up one point with a kill from Hill, ETSU advanced to a 23-14 lead and made it hard for the Panthers to recover, forcing a fifth set.
Regrouping in set five, HPU set out on a 6-2 lead with the help of Bukovcan and Freeland at the net. A service ace from
Brooke Briscoe kept HPU ahead 8-5. The Buccaneers tied it at eight all with back-to-back blocks to shut down HPU's offense before taking a 10-8 lead for their first lead of the set since 2-1.
A kill from
Gia Padilla put HPU back within one at 10-9 and an attack error from ETSU tied the set at 10 all. Unfortunately, the Panthers only picked up one more point before the end of the match with a double block from Gray and Freeland and fell 15-11 in the final set of the game.
Extra Stats:
- HPU totaled 50 kills to ETSU's 66 kills and hit .101 as a team compared to the Buccaneers' .213 hitting percentage.
- HPU dominated on the serve collecting 12 aces to get ETSU out of system.
- Kea Whillock led the game with 15 digs and Gray totaled a season-high 42 assists.
UP NEXT:
High Point travels to Washington, D.C. for a matchup with Howard University on Friday, September 18 at 6:00 p.m. Follow along with live updates on X (@HPUVB).
#GoHPU
