MILLIGAN, Tenn. — On Friday evening, Milligan University's women's volleyball squad returned home after a three-game road stint, welcoming Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) opponent Brenau University's Golden Tigers to Steve Lacy Fieldhouse. Coming off a victory in their latest match, Milligan hoped to continue its momentum, but Brenau took control of the match early and led throughout the three-set contest to pick up a 3-0 victory over the Buffs.
In the first set, Brenau scored six of the first 10 points to take an early lead, and both sides exchanged points until Milligan scored two points in a row behind kills from Lacie Weatherman and Ashton Blair to knot the score at 9. From there, the Golden Tigers rattled off six points in a row to take a commanding 15-9 advantage. Despite late efforts from a Blair ace and kill, Brenau eventually closed out the first set with a 25-17 victory.
Milligan struggled to get any momentum going in the second, as Brenau scored the first five points and slowly extended its lead to eight at 16-8. The Buffs looked to work their way back into the set but were unable to close the gap despite multiple kills from Bella Devoti. The Golden Tigers eventually captured the second set, 25-16, to take a 2-0 lead.
The third set started out in similar fashion to the second, as Brenau once again grabbed an early 5-1 lead. The Golden Tigers extended that lead to as many as 11 at 19-8 before the Buffs managed a four-point run behind a Devoti kill and attacking errors from Brenau. However, the Milligan momentum was quickly halted, as Brenau scored six of the last eight points to capture the third set, 25-14, and the match, 3-0.
Offensively, Ashton Blair and Bella Devoti led Milligan with eight kills apiece. Blair recorded her eight kills on 38 attacks with seven errors, while Devoti had eight kills on 21 swings with four errors. Freshman Lacie Weatherman added four kills on 20 attacks, while Erin Littleton recorded one kill on nine attempts.Â
Kyndl Hodge was the lone setter for the Buffs and recorded 16 assists, while Olivia Schoenstra added three assists and Blair contributed one.
Hodge led Milligan with 13 digs, followed by Schoenstra with 10 and Taylor Brinn with seven. Blair added four digs, while Rachel Bass had three and Devoti recorded one. Milligan finished with two total blocks, with Clare Clark recording a solo block, while Weatherman and Littleton added a block assist. Blair and Brinn each recorded one ace.
Milligan (1-9, 1-5 AAC) will have a quick turnaround against a difficult conference opponent, as they will face Reinhardt University, who ranks third in the AAC, on Saturday, Sept. 26. First serve at Steve Lacy Fieldhouse is scheduled for 11 a.m.
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