SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- Freshman Kate Carlson launched a career-high 19 kills and the John Brown University volleyball team battled through an epic second set to take a 2-0 lead only to see College of the Ozarks (Mo.) rattled off three consecutive set wins in a five-set thriller Wednesday night (Sept. 24) inside Bill George Arena.
Carlson hit the double-digit termination mark for the fifth time this season en route to hitting .341 (19-4-44) on the match, while freshman Paige Addington stepped up to contribute nine kills – as did sophomore Federica Ferrari in the setback.
The Golden Eagles (6-9, 2-5 Sooner Athletic) received the first double-double of sophomore Tessa Burton's season, contributing 23 assists and 14 digs. Freshman Taylor Kosmicki also finished with 19 assists.
On defense, junior Akayla Kador posted a team-leading five block-assists to accompany five kills in the front row, while Addington scooped up 24 in the back row. Sophomore Mallory Jury added 15 digs.
John Brown rallied after a slow start in the first set, finishing the frame on an 11-4 run largely powered by eight Carlson terminations in the set.
The second set featured a season-high 19 ties and 11 lead changes as neither side wanted to drop the frame. The Bobcats (9-3, 4-3) battled back from set point three times to take a late 25-24 lead, until Kador and freshman Reese Montgomery piled on consecutive kills to setup set point. Jury finished the set off with one of her three aces on the night, pushing the Blue and Gold's lead to two.
Montgomery would go on to finish with seven kills on 17 swings (.353) in the middle, adding three block-assists.
Then, the host side's offense fell into difficulties, dropping from .205 through the first two periods to .012 in the final three as College of the Ozarks rallied back for the reverse-sweep.
"I'm really proud of how hard our team competed tonight despite some challenging circumstances," head coach Ken Carver admitted. "With two players out—one due to injury and another from illness—we had just one day to prepare a brand-new lineup. Unfortunately, we couldn't sustain the momentum from the first two set victories.
"In the final three sets, we struggled to stop scoring runs and found ourselves in big deficits. Battling from behind takes tremendous energy, and while we came up short, I love our team's refusal to quit and their relentless effort. These tough four- and five-set losses are hard to take, but we're learning valuable lessons. We're applying them, and I believe we'll soon turn this hard work into the positive results we're working towards."
Anna Bruner stood out for the visitors, piling up 13 kills (.391) and seven blocks, while Cora Roweton battled to 10 terminations, 10 digs and five block-assists as the Bobcats improved to 29-24 against John Brown since 1993.
The Golden Eagles host Science & Arts (Okla.) on Friday night (Sept. 26) at 6 p.m. inside Bill George Arena. The match will stream live on both the SAC Sports Network and the Urban Edge Network.
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