HARTSVILLE, S.C. --- Tusculum's comeback bid came up short as the Coker College volleyball team edged the Pioneers 3-2 in a five-set thriller at the DeLoach Center in South Atlantic Conference action Friday night.
The Cobras (13-16, 5-16 SAC won the match by scores of 25-23, 25-23, 14-25, 23-25, 15-11 to even the season series with the Pioneers (12-17, 7-14 SAC). Tusculum is currently in eighth place in the league standings and holds the final spot in the SAC postseason. TC will close out the regular season at SAC-leader Wingate beginning at 2 p.m. A win over Wingate would seal the No. 8 seed for the Pioneers in next week's SAC Tournament. TC could also get the final spot in the SAC postseason with a Mars Hill loss at Coker and a Brevard loss at Lincoln Memorial on Saturday. If there is a three-way tie for eighth, the conference office will decide the No. 8 seed via tiebreaker scenarios.
Despite the loss, the Pioneers recorded more kills, assists, service aces and digs than the Cobras. But Coker posted 10 team blocks as Tusculum committed 29 hitting errors on the evening.
Coker won the first two sets by identical 25-23 scores. The Cobras rallied from a 15-9 deficit in the first set and posted a .209 hitting percentage in the second frame to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Pioneers jumped out to an 8-2 led in the third set and led wire-to-wire for a 25-14 decision. Tusculum led throughout most of the fourth frame but had to hold off a late Coker rally before winning the frame 25-23 to send the match to a deciding set.
Coker scored the first four points of the match in the fifth set, but Tusculum battled again and cut the Cobras lead to 8-7 following a Madison Shumaker kill. But three straight points from Coker, including back-to-back hitting errors moved the hosts ahead 11-7. TC cut the Coker lead to 12-10 after a solo block from Aubrey Hawkins. But a kill by Regan Kennen and a Taylor du Bray service ace on match point sealed the victory for the Cobras.
Madison Mink led Coker with 15 kills and a .378 hitting percentage, while Megan Hardy finished with 12 kills. Du Bray added five kills, 24 assists and seven digs, while Christen Bragg tallied 22 assists, 15 digs and three blocks. Bethany Prochnow tallied a match-high six blocks to go along with her eight kills.
Tusculum's Laryssa Welch led all players with 16 kills, while posting two service aces, five digs and two blocks. Hawkins accounted for 14 kills, while Rachel Garnett tallied 11 kills and three digs for the senior. Three Tusculum players finished with double-digit assists, including Hallie Zumack (27), Shannon Murphy (22) and Megan Yopko. Yopko also led the Tusculum defend with a career-high 33 digs, while tallying a service ace.
