Marietta, Georgia - The Knights Volleyball team tipped off the season on Saturday, August 24th as they traveled to Marietta, Georgia to take part in the Running Eagle Classic, hosted by Life University. The Knights were looking to start off the season in a positive direction as they returned four players from last season with eight new players to add some depth to the roster.
Game One - Bryan College
The Knights would get the day started with a match against the Lions of Bryan College. The Knights would start off the first set winning the first three points as the Lions would tie the set at 5-5 and the set would remain close. The Knights would take a 13-11 lead but the Lions would score six points in a row before the Knights would tie at 21-21. The Knights would only score one more point in the set and would lose 25-22. The second set would see another close match as neither team could pull away from the other. The Knights and Lions would have to play extra points before the Knights would lose the set 29-27. The Knights would come out hot in the third set as they would pull away to a 15-8 lead but the Lions would persist and the Knights would go cold as they would drop the third set 25-20.
Caitlyn McCall Wolf led the way with 16 kills,
Beau Houston had 19 assists, and
Paige Collier had 22 digs.
Game Two - Warner University
The Knights would have a quick turnaround as they would take on the Royals of Warner University immediately following the first match of the day. The Knights would fall behind early in the first set but would come back to take an 11-10 lead. The Royals would re-take the lead but the Knights would hang in and would win the last three points of the set to win 26-24. The Knights would jump out to early lead in the second set, taking an 8-3 lead, before the Royals would storm back with six straight points. The Knights would keep their heads in the match as they would come from behind and win the final six points of the set to win 25-22. The Knights would again pull away with an early lead in the third set and they would not relinquish the lead as they would take the third set 25-21.
Ellie Johnson led the Knights with nine kills,
Beau Houston had 16 assists, and
Paige Collier had 22 digs.
Game Three - Florida National University
The Knights would have a break between the second and third matches as they would take on the Conquistadors of Florida National University to wrap up the tournament. The Knights would fall behind 7-2 early in the first set and would be unable to recover as they would lose the set 25-14. The Knights would fall behind again in the second set but would show some signs of fight as they would get within one point late in the set before losing 25-22. The story of falling behind early would continue in the third set as the Knights would trail 10-1 early in the set. The Knights would attempt to mount a comeback but would run out of time as they would lose 25-17.
Yanelis Rodriguez led the Knights with six kills,
Ellie Johnson had 10 assists, and
Paige Collier had 15 digs.
The Knights finish the tournament with a 1-2 record as they return home before heading back out on the road on Saturday, August 31st to play a tri-match against Pensacola Christian College at 2:30 PM EST and LaGrange College at 5 PM EST.
