
Bears Split Home Opener of Mercer Classic
8/30/2019 10:47:00 PM | Volleyball
Mercer defeats Georgia Southern in straight sets
MACON, Ga.  – The Bears split a pair of matches on the opening day of the 2019 season with a win against Georgia Southern and a loss against Nicholls State at the Mercer Bears Classic.
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Mercer (1-1) defeated Georgia Southern, 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-18) behind Annie Karle's 11 kills. Mercer's first loss of the season came early against Nicholls State. State took the match 3-1 (17-25, 25-23, 25-19, and 25-23) after falling in the first set.
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MERCER VS GEORGIA SOUTHERN
Set One | Mercer 25, Georgia Southern 21
Annie Karle recorded the Bears first kill of the match to set the tempo against Georgia Southern. The Eagles fought back and took the lead but with a strong block from Alexia Morey Brittany Major, the Bears found their zone and never let up. With an ace from Nya Steele, kills from Roberta Todd and Jovana Babin, the Bears won the first set 25-21.
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Set Two | Mercer 25, Georgia Southern 17
Mercer took the early lead off of a kill and two Georgia Southern mistakes- this would set the pace for the second set. The bears would go up by eight with a blocks by Roberta Todd, Alexia Morey and Jovana Babin, and a few more mistakes from Georgia Southern. Brittany Major ended the set with another kill.
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Set Three | Mercer 25, Georgia Southern 18
The Bears came into the set looking to sweep, but the Eagles were not going to go down without a fight. It was back and forth in the beginning of the set but with back-to-back aces from Roberta Todd then an ace from Amber Gibson, the Bears were going to fight until the end. Alexia Morey put up a block to increase the lead by four. The Eagles tried to come back but due to a few mistakes, Mercer took the set and completed the sweep.
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MERCER VS NICHOLLS STATE
Set One | Mercer 25, Nicholls State 17
The Bears came out strong against the Colonels with Annie Karle and Roberta Todd with a combined 25 kills. Junior Malia Randolph recorded 18 assists, while Sophomore Nya Steele recorded 23. Nicholls State fought their way back but the Bears held them and ended the set with a kill by Brittany Major. Â
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Set Two | Mercer 23, Nicholls State 25
The Bears went down soon against the Colonels but scratched their way back to bring it within one. Mercer went on a 5-0 streak with kills from Jovana Babin, Roberta Todd, and Annie Karle, but a late run by the bears wasn't enough to win the set.
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Set Three | Mercer 19, Nicholls State 25
Mercer fell behind early against Nicholls State in the third set. Despite kills from Jovana Babin and Malia Randolph, the Colonels set the tone and took the set
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Set Four | Mercer 23, Nicholls State 25
The Bears and Colonels battled hard against one another, the Bears trying to force a fifth set. With kills from Alexia Morey and Jaida Howell, Mercer still came up short and lost it by two
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NOTABLES
UP NEXT
The Bears will play Campbell tomorrow at 1 p.m. in Hawkins Arena to close out the Mercer Bears Classic.
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FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Volleyball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBearsVB (Twitter), and @mercervolleyball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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Mercer (1-1) defeated Georgia Southern, 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-18) behind Annie Karle's 11 kills. Mercer's first loss of the season came early against Nicholls State. State took the match 3-1 (17-25, 25-23, 25-19, and 25-23) after falling in the first set.
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MERCER VS GEORGIA SOUTHERN
Set One | Mercer 25, Georgia Southern 21
Annie Karle recorded the Bears first kill of the match to set the tempo against Georgia Southern. The Eagles fought back and took the lead but with a strong block from Alexia Morey Brittany Major, the Bears found their zone and never let up. With an ace from Nya Steele, kills from Roberta Todd and Jovana Babin, the Bears won the first set 25-21.
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Set Two | Mercer 25, Georgia Southern 17
Mercer took the early lead off of a kill and two Georgia Southern mistakes- this would set the pace for the second set. The bears would go up by eight with a blocks by Roberta Todd, Alexia Morey and Jovana Babin, and a few more mistakes from Georgia Southern. Brittany Major ended the set with another kill.
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Set Three | Mercer 25, Georgia Southern 18
The Bears came into the set looking to sweep, but the Eagles were not going to go down without a fight. It was back and forth in the beginning of the set but with back-to-back aces from Roberta Todd then an ace from Amber Gibson, the Bears were going to fight until the end. Alexia Morey put up a block to increase the lead by four. The Eagles tried to come back but due to a few mistakes, Mercer took the set and completed the sweep.
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MERCER VS NICHOLLS STATE
Set One | Mercer 25, Nicholls State 17
The Bears came out strong against the Colonels with Annie Karle and Roberta Todd with a combined 25 kills. Junior Malia Randolph recorded 18 assists, while Sophomore Nya Steele recorded 23. Nicholls State fought their way back but the Bears held them and ended the set with a kill by Brittany Major. Â
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Set Two | Mercer 23, Nicholls State 25
The Bears went down soon against the Colonels but scratched their way back to bring it within one. Mercer went on a 5-0 streak with kills from Jovana Babin, Roberta Todd, and Annie Karle, but a late run by the bears wasn't enough to win the set.
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Set Three | Mercer 19, Nicholls State 25
Mercer fell behind early against Nicholls State in the third set. Despite kills from Jovana Babin and Malia Randolph, the Colonels set the tone and took the set
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Set Four | Mercer 23, Nicholls State 25
The Bears and Colonels battled hard against one another, the Bears trying to force a fifth set. With kills from Alexia Morey and Jaida Howell, Mercer still came up short and lost it by two
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NOTABLES
- Annie Karle led Mercer with 25 kills- 14 against Nicholls State, 11 against Georgia Southern
- Freshman Jovana Babin started her Mercer career with 14 kills and two blocks
- Junior Emilee Wissmach recorded 34 digs on the day, 23 against Nicholls State which tied her highest. She recorded the same back in 2017 against Northwestern State
- Nya Steele recorded 38 assists in the day, Malia Randolph with 35
- Mercer totaled 15 blocks
UP NEXT
The Bears will play Campbell tomorrow at 1 p.m. in Hawkins Arena to close out the Mercer Bears Classic.
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FOLLOW THE BEARS
For complete coverage of Mercer Volleyball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBearsVB (Twitter), and @mercervolleyball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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Team Stats
NSU
MER
Kills
51
51
Errors
15
21
Attempts
123
125
Hitting %
.293
.240
Points
64.0
69.0
Assists
48
47
Aces
7
10
Blocks
6.0
8.0
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
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