Tigerville, SC – The North Greenville Trailblazers battled the Braves of UNC Pembroke through five sets Friday evening at Hayes Gymnasium, but ultimately fell with a final score of 3-2.
The loss dropped North Greenville to 12-11 overall and 8-6 in conference play, while UNC Pembroke improved to 17-7 overall and 12-3 in the conference.
North Greenville claimed a tightly contested opening set 27-25 before UNC Pembroke responded with a 25-18 victory in the second. The Trailblazers delivered their strongest offensive performance in the third set, hitting .286 on the way to a 25-15 win and a 2-1 match advantage.
However, the Braves answered with a 25-16 victory in the fourth set before taking the deciding fifth set 15-10 to secure the comeback victory.
Samantha Ball led North Greenville with a match-high 18 kills while adding 20 digs and three service aces. Peyton Taylor contributed nine kills and 11 digs, while Elise Smith added eight kills and three block assists.
North Greenville held an 8-4 advantage in service aces, while both teams recorded 96 digs. UNC Pembroke finished with 54 kills compared to 51 for NGU and held a .160 to .077 advantage in hitting percentage.
NGU will quickly return to action tomorrow against the Flying Fleet of Erskine College at Hayes Gymnasium.
