ST. MARYS CITY, Md. - St. Mary's (MD) won the final two sets to rally from a 2-1 deficit in a five-set victory over the McDaniel College volleyball team Friday night, 25-21, 21-25, 23-25, 25-23, 15-11.
The Green Terror (8-4) had four players with at least 10 kills, totaled 13 blocks, and took advantage of 12 Seahawk service errors, but St. Mary's had 68 kills, including 22 over the final two sets to edge out the come-from-behind victory.
Sophomore
Kaitlyn Saidat scored 14.0 points with 10 kills and six total blocks and junior
Cassy Poteet recorded 34 assists and 17 digs. Sophomore
Mariyah Carson and first-year
Annika Cortez each had a team-high 11 kills. Cortez added 12 digs to finish with her second career double double.
Junior
Stephanie Buttons totaled 31 digs and senior
Reese Beck had 10 digs and four service aces.
In the first set, McDaniel had two scoring pushes, winning seven of eight rallies during one and later winning four-straight points behind the service of first-year
Arrian Spratt as Cortez and senior
Abigayle Bowley each had a kill while Spratt added a service ace. However, with the set tied at 21-21, the Seahawks scored the final four points to take the set, 25-21.
Four straight points on Buttons' serve helped the Green Terror in the second set with Buttons delivering two aces and Carson adding a kill. The Seahawks scored five consecutive points late, but Saidat recorded two of the Green Terror's final three points on kills from Poteet as they won, 25-21.
In the third set, McDaniel recovered from a late six-point Seahawks run, getting a kill from Saidat to stop the stretch before Spratt added a service ace and Bowley scored the final point on a kill to give the visitors a 25-23 victory.
The Green Terror's main response in the fourth set came on Beck's serve as the team won four-straight points with two Beck aces, a Carson kill and a block by Saidat and Carson to move in front, 10-7. The set was tied for the seventh time at 23-23 before the Seahawks tied the match at two sets apiece by scoring the final two points.
In the deciding set, McDaniel jumped out to a 3-1 lead before St. Mary's used an 11-4 run to take a seven-point advantage. The visitors scored six of the next seven points to pull within two, highlighted by kills from Carson and Saidat around a Seahawks attack error. However, St. Mary's closed out the set and the match on back-to-back kills to win 15-11.
The Green Terror travel to Franklin & Marshall on Wednesday for their second-straight road match to open conference play. First serve is at 7 p.m.
