Mercer University
East Tenn. St.
Volleyball Suffers 3-1 Loss to ETSU
11/15/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
MACON, Ga. – Mercer junior Molly Locke and sophomore Ellie James both had double-double performances as the volleyball team fell to East Tennessee State 3-1 (25-23, 27-25, 19-25, 25-20) on Saturday afternoon at Hawkins Arena.
The Bears fell to 10-19 (5-10 SoCon) with the loss while ETSU won its sixth-straight and improved to 17-15 (11-5 SoCon).
Locke racked up 19 kills with only four errors while also posting 12 digs, two block solos, an assist and a service ace on Saturday. James earned 12 kills on 34 attempts to go along with 12 digs and two service aces.
Freshman Emily Krogman and senior Caroline Carlton also reached double figure kill totals, tallying 12 and 11, respectively. Krogman hit a match-high .524 with just a single error on 21 swings while Carlton's 11 kills came in conjunction with two service aces, two block assists and a dig.
Mercer led 16-15 in the first set before the visitors ripped off three quick points to regain the lead. Later in the frame, a block by senior Cara Tripp had the Bears within one of the lead before the Bucs scored two of the final three points to take an early lead.
ETSU squeaked out a win in the second set as well, breaking away from a 25-25 tie with a kill from Bethany Gesell and a Mercer attacking error.
The Bears got on the scoreboard in the third set, using a 9-2 surge to take a commanding 19-12 advantage. Locke was key in the frame, hammering out seven kills on 15 attempts.
The fourth set was back-and-forth throughout, featuring 13 tie score and seven lead changes. The hosts led 20-19 in the stanza before a kill by ETSU's Meredith Hardy sparked a 6-0 Bucs run to end the match.
Sophomore Hannah Noon finished with her second-best assist total of the year, handing out 48 helpers while adding six digs, a block assist and a service ace. Sophomore Tori Penrod chipped in a team-high 16 digs on the back line and also registered four assists and two service aces.
The Bears complete the regular season on Sunday, hosting Western Carolina for Senior Day at 2 p.m.
