Volleyball Takes Over Second in SoCon with Win at Wofford

Saturday, October 21

Spartanburg, S.C.

6 p.m.

Mercer University

12-9,8-2SoCon

Wofford

15-6,6-4SoCon

Mercer

Wofford

Volleyball Takes Over Second in SoCon with Win at Wofford

10/21/2023 7:58:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

SPARTANBURG – After entering the weekend tied for second in the Southern Conference with Wofford, the Bears extend their win streak to six and secure second place with six matches remaining in the regular season.

From first serve to match point, this was a battle from both sides. Neither team led by more than four until Mercer in the final set, and the match was filled with ties and one-point exchanges. Skyler Bumpers led the Bears in blocks that made more impact on the energy of the team than the score on the board. When libero Abbey Havrilla left the game with an injury, the whole team stepped up and continued playing strong to win the set. Havrilla later returned, still leading the team in digs despite missing a significant number of plays. Kylee Quigley had a big night, leading all players in points with 24. The next closest was Wofford's Mary Emily Morgan with 11. Quigley also surpassed her career high in kills (21) that she set against Western Carolina on Sept. 30.

The Bears will host Western Carolina at Hawkins Arena in Macon on October 26 at 6 p.m.

MATCH SUMMARY
FINAL SCORE	Mercer 3, Wofford 0 (29-27, 25-23, 25-19)
RECORDS	Mercer 12-9 (8-2 SoCon); Wofford 15-6 (6-4 SoCon)
ARENA	Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium (Spartanburg, S.C.)

MATCH REPLAY
SET 1 I 29-27	Wofford came out ahead to start the match, but Kylee Quigley scored on back-to-back kills to bring it within one. Skyler Bumpers recorded a big block shortly after to help the Bears build momentum. Another kill by Quigley tied the set at 6-6. The score got even tighter as set point neared, no team leading by more than one after 16-18. In a set that was full of excitement, intensity, and big blocks by Bumpers, neither team showed any slack, with the Bears taking the win at 29-27.
SET 2 I 25-23	Set two started showing no sign of breaking away from the back and forth pattern of set one, but Mercer managed to pull out a three-point lead at 12-9. Libero Abbey Havrilla left the game with an injury, replaced by Carley Raleigh. Wofford came out of the injury timeout with momentum, but Mercer fired back to take a 17-14 lead at the media timeout. Kylee Quigley finished the set with her 17th kill of the day, on pace to exceed her career high of 20 set on Sept. 30 against Western Carolina.
SET 3 I 25-19	Wofford started out with a quick two points and held a lead until Mercer stepped ahead at 10-9 on Ali Waldon's fourth kill of the set. Several ties came to follow, with the last tie at 17-17. A service ace by Carley Raleigh brought the Bears to match point at 24-18. Wofford stayed in it for one more point before Gia Padilla secured the match point with a kill.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
KILLS	Kylee Quigley (21), Gia Padilla (7), Skyler Bumpers (6), Aliyah Waldon (5)
ASSISTS	Kiera McCarles (32), Abbey Havrilla (3)
DIGS	Abbey Havrilla (15), Gia Padilla (13), Kiera McCarles (8), Kylee Quigley (5)
BLOCKS	Skyler Bumpers (2.5), Kylee Quigley (2.0), Lillian Beardsley (1.0), Gia Padilla (1.0), Hannah White (0.5)
SERVICE ACES	Kiera McCarles (3), Carley Raleigh (3), Kylee Quigley (1), Gia Padilla (1)

UP NEXT
The Bears will host Western Carolina at Hawkins Arena in Macon on October 26 at 6 p.m.

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