Lady Flames lose hard-fought game against Winthrop University

• Momentum shifts in game between Liberty and Winthrop leads to fifth set that Winthrop ultimately won.
• Flames fought hard to force a fifth set and remain in the suspenseful game until the end.

 

After leading two sets to one, The Lady Flames volleyball team suffered a 3-2 loss to the Winthrop Eagles the evening of Friday, Oct. 13.

Winthrop barely won the first set, pulling ahead to win 25-23. Both teams played hard and had a lot of back and forth, according to head coach Shane Pinder. The set had 10 ties and five lead changes, with the Eagles winning on two back-to-back kills.

“There’s a lot of momentum shifts in volleyball,” Pinder said.

The momentum did shift – this time in the Lady Flames favor. Liberty surged forward in the second set, winning 25-13. The Lady Flames defense stood strong with 11 of their points coming from errors by the Eagles. Sophomore middle blocker Anna Gragg led the Lady Flames with five kills in the set.

Gragg led the team with 19 kills and eight blocks for the game, which tied her career high. Both sophomore right side hitter Casey Goodwin and senior outside hitter Gabrielle Vess also made kills in the double digits.

The third set was a much closer competition between both teams. Neither team made more than four points in a row, serving back and forth until the Lady Flames won the set 27-25.

The tension peaked when Winthrop called a timeout before the set point, leaving the audience in suspense. The Lady Flames came back from the timeout to win the set, putting them in the lead 2-1.

“We always come in with the mindset that it won’t be easy,” Vess said.

For Vess, her season has seen a big change. She mentioned being pushed out of her comfort zone and into a leadership position.

“Since it’s my senior season, it’s been a lot of lasts,” Vess said, “All three seniors are making the most of it.”

After the Lady Flames won two straight sets, Winthrop began to battle back. The Eagles claimed the fourth set 25-21, forcing a fifth set.

“We earned our way into the last set,” freshman attacker Jenna Culhan said.

Both teams desperately fought to take the final set, but ultimately the Eagles overcame the Lady Flames 15-12.

“It really came down to a couple of hits, and those could have been our hits,” Pinder said. “We won a lot of the stats, just not the score.”

The Lady Flames led the game in hits, .213-.173, and also led in blocks, 12-7. The Eagles led in aces and digs.

The loss to the Eagles marked the Lady Flames third straight defeat.

However, the Lady Flames have to continue moving forward. According to Pinder, the team would prepare by resting and getting their emotions right before Saturday’s game against Charleston Southern University.

“We have a lot of young players and new lineups,” Pinder said, “We’re still figuring this out.”

Liberty was able to snap their three-game losing streak with a 3-0 win against Charleston Southern University Saturday, Oct. 14.

The Lady Flames will face off against Charleston Southern again Friday, Oct. 20 in Rock Hill, South Carolina. The game will mark the halfway point in the Lady Flames’ conference season.