Bears Rally In the Final Match at FAU Invitational
8/27/2022 6:14:00 PM | Volleyball
Mercer rebound against Alabama A&M after two losses, with two named to the FAU Invitational All-Tournament Team.
Boca Raton, Fla.- The Mercer Bears volleyball team fell to the Lehigh Mountain Hawks Friday night at the Florida Atlantic Invitational, 3-0. Mercer also dropped its second match against FAU, 3-0. The Bears finished out the FAU Invitational by beating Alabama A&M 3-1.Â
Match One: LehighÂ
Set One | The Bears got off to a good start, taking a four-point lead. The Hawks slowly chipped away at the difference to take the lead after the first time out. While the Bears stayed neck and neck with the Hawks, Lehigh took the set 25-20.
Set Two | Mercer got on the board first with a kill from Lillian Beardsley. Mercer worked its way through the game, staying next to the Hawks throughout the game. Lehigh rallied and took the set, 25-23, with a kill.Â
Set Three | Lehigh came out of the gates hot, quickly taking a 6-3 lead. After a few errors from the Hawks, the Bears tied it up at 6. The teams kept within two or three points with two kills from both Morgan Verheyen and Annie Karle for Mercer. The last Bears' kill came from Beardsley, cutting Lehigh's lead to 22-20. The Hawks would go on to a three-point kill streak to take the set, 25-20.
Match Two: FAU
Set One | FAU took an early lead and was ahead of the Bears by the first time out, 15-10. FAU never lost the lead for the rest of the set to win, 25-14.
Set Two | The Owls would take another early lead, but the Bears slowly started chipping away at the point difference. By the second time out the Bears only trailed by two. FAU did pull away with the set, 25-21.
Set Three | The Bears looked for a comeback, but could not get in front of the Owls. By the second time out FAU led 14-10. While the Bears had their most kills (9) for the match in this set, FAU would win 25-17 to take the match. The team finished with 20 aces and a .256 kill percentage.Â
Match Three: Alabama A&M
Set One | Alabama A&M took an early lead, but the Bears recovered with a 3-0 scoring run to tie it at 7. The Bulldogs pulled ahead, led by a two-point difference for most of the set, and eventually won, 25-22.
Set Two | Mercer came out of the gate hot and took a four-point lead. The Bears would go onto multiple 4-0 scoring runs with Annie Karle racking up 8 kills with a .467 HIT%. Mercer kept the momentum and took the set 25-11.
Set Three | Mercer continued to dominate in set three and lead 10-5 by the first time out. The Bears would stay in front of the Bulldogs and go on a 5-0 scoring run at 21-12. They would continue to rally and take the set, 25-17.
Set Four | Alabama A&M took the first two points, but Mercer retaliated winning five of the next six points, to take the lead 5-3. The teams would stay within a one or two-point difference until Mercer took the lead with a 5-0 scoring run at 11-6. The teams stayed neck and neck until Mercer claimed the set, 25-21. Annie Karle(20) and Jaida Howell(10) both finished the match with double-digit kills.Â
The Bears finished the invitational with a 1-2 record. Annie Karle and Jaida Howell were named to the FAU Invitational All-Tournament team.
UP NEXT
The Bears will return home to host the Mercer Bear Classic. Their first match is set for Sept. 2 at 7 p.m. against the University of Southern Mississippi.Â
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