CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Converse (1-5) volleyball team was unable to secure a win during the opening day of the Queens Invitational, falling 3-0 to both host Queens and Wingate.
GAME ONE: CONVERSE 0, QUEENS (N.C.) 3
Kiara Cannon and Morgan Pearson led the offense with six and five kills, respectively, while Lauren Tharrington tallied a team-high 14 assists. Kelsey Elliott and Pearson collected 13 digs each and Elizabeth Yohe reached the double-digit dig plateau with 11. Logan Witt led the Royals with 11 kills.
Set one was evenly contested early as Queens held a small 14-11 lead after the first 25 points of play. However, the Royals turned it on with an 11-1 run to take a 1-0 match lead, taking the first frame 25-12. A kill by Yohe in set two brought the Valkyries to within three (8-5) points, but once again QU used a massive run, this time 11-3, to race ahead 19-8 late in the contest. Cannon blasted a kill to narrow the margin to 19-9, but Queens took six of the next 10 points, taking a 2-0 match lead with a 25-13 win.
Set three was tough sledding for the Valkyries as they fell behind 16-4 and could never gain any traction, dropping set three 25-10 and the match, 3-0.
GAME TWO: CONVERSE 0, WINGATE 3
Morgan Pearson set a new career-high with 15 kills, but the rest of the Vals managed only six total in the losing effort. Lauren Tharrington barely missed double-digit assists, finishing the day with nine and Sydney Allen anchored the defense with eight digs.
Wingate took a 3-3 tie and turned it into a 17-5 lead with a 14-2 run in the first frame. A 4-2 mini run by Converse trimmed the deficit to 19-9, but the Bulldogs collected 6-of-8 points to take set one 25-11. Set two was a nip-and-tuck affair as Wingate held a minimal 10-9 lead following a kill from Pearson. The two teams traded the next eight points and with the score at 14-13 in favor of Wingate, the Bulldogs ripped off an 11-4 run to take set two 25-17.
Fatigue set in for the Valkyries during the third frame as Wingate raced out to a 9-3 mark. That lead grew to 23-9 and eventually 25-10 as WU took the third and final set 25-10 to sweep the Valkyries.
Converse will return to the court tomorrow for the second and final day of the invitational, facing Winston-Salem at 10 a.m. before closing the day out with Anderson at 4:45 p.m.