The Bruins volleyball team picked up another road win on Thursday night as the team defeated Johnson & Wales University 3-1 in Charlotte, North Carolina. With the win, the Bruins have won four straight and ten of their last eleven as the team sits at 11-5 on the season.
"Tonight was another match where we had to work through adversity," Head Coach Vickie Denny said. "We had players playing in different positions and contributing in different ways to get the win."
The Bruins came into the match on the heels of a road victory over Piedmont University on Tuesday. The team had fallen behind early in that match but battled back to capture a 3-1 win.
Johnson & Wales came into Thursday's match at 9-7 on the season. The Wildcats had won four straight but had their winning streak snapped with a 3-0 loss to Randolph University before falling to Pfeiffer University on Tuesday.
In set one, the Bruins came out strong and took an early lead. Emma Riddle hammered down a kill to help the team extend their lead 7-2. From there, the Bruins kept the pressure on as they used great passing and offense to generate kills. Later on in the set, Timbre Cruz had a nice back row kill as she put the Burins up 21-14. From there, the team never looked back as they took set one 25-15.
The Wildcats came roaring back in set two as the score remained close throughout. The Bruins had some unforced errors and JWU took advantage as they maintained a slim lead. The Wildcats would then even the match at 1-1 thanks to a 25-23 win in set two.
The Bruins regained their composure and it showed in set three particularly in the defensive play for the team. At the net, Emma Riddle and Camila Silva stood strong and generated several blocks for the team. This gave the Bruins momentum and the team took advantage of it as they went on to win set three 25-17 to lead the match 2-1.
Another road victory was in sight as the Bruins took the court for set four. Again, defensive play by the Bruins was crucial as blocks at the net prevented the Wildcats from getting into a consistent offensive flow.
After gaining a large lead, a block at the net by Camila Silva helped the Bruins put the game out of reach as the team went on to win set four 25-15 and the match 3-1.
"Johnson & Wales has a very strong team and they really pushed us tonight," Coach Denny said. "Our defense was key in the third and fourth sets and that made a huge difference for us in getting the win."
Emma Riddle had a solid performance for the Bruins as the senior finished with 14 kills, one solo block and four block assists. Katherine Hoopes had a double-double on the night with 10 kills and 13 digs while Kiersten Hoopes finished with a double-double as well with 45 assists and 12 digs.
Next up, the Bruins will be back home on Tuesday night as the team welcomes a South region rival to the Davis Field House. The Bruins will host Toccoa Falls College with the match scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
