Runnin' Bulldogs Fall to Radford, 3-1, in Regular Season Finale
November 13, 2011 | Volleyball
Boiling Springs, N.C. - Gardner-Webb junior Carol Solano and sophomore Tyler Cockrell each posted double-digit kills, yet it wasn't enough as the Runnin' Bulldogs fell in a four-set thriller to Radford, 3-1 (25-18, 19-25, 26-28, 26-28), in the two teams' regular season finale Saturday night in Paul Porter Arena in Boiling Springs, N.C.
With the loss, the Runnin' Bulldogs finish the regular season at 10-19 overall and 5-9 in the Big South, while Radford concludes its regular season slate at 15-14 overall and 9-5 in the Big South.
Gardner-Webb, who posted a .368 team attack percentage in Friday night's sweep of Liberty, struggled to find its offensive efficiency on Saturday night hitting .170 for the match.
In the first, an early kill by Solano put the Runnin' Bulldogs in front by one at 4-3, only to have a GWU error in the next rally give Radford a point and retie the score at 4-4.
However, the error seemed to spark the GWU squad, as the home team ran out on a 7-2 run, capped off by kills from Solano and Cockrell, to take its largest lead of the set at five, 11-6, and force a Radford timeout.
Out of the timeout, the two teams went back-and-forth, point-for-point, as Gardner-Webb found themselves up by five at 15-10 after a Laura Wilcox kill.
Radford cut the first set lead to three at 17-14 on a GWU attack error, however, the Runnin' Bulldogs held their composure and pushed their lead back out to five at 19-14 by way of a Highlander error.
GWU finished the set out with a 6-4 run, highlighted by three kills from Solano, one from Wilcox and a service ace from Cockrell, to take set one 25-18 and an early 1-0 match lead.
The momentum from the opening set win clearly carried over into set two for GWU, as the Runnin' Bulldogs ran out to a 4-2 lead on another Solano kill. However, the Highlanders returned the favor to GWU, answering with a 9-4 run of their own to take an 11-9 lead.
Gardner-Webb tied the score up five times over the next several rallies, yet could never put together back-to-back points to take away the lead from the Highlanders.
With the set knotted up at 17-17, Radford retook the lead by two at 19-17 on a Emily Carlin kill and a GWU attack error, putting the pressure back on the Runnin' Bulldogs.
The Runnin' Bulldogs battled back to cut the lead to one at 20-19 on a Lauren Evans kill, only to have the Highlanders finish the frame out with five straight points to down GWU 25-19 and tie the match up at 1-1.
After a kill by Radford's Rachel Wiechecki started the third set, the Runnin' Bulldogs outscored the Highlanders 10-4 to take a 10-5 lead on a Radford service error.
A Gardner-Webb attack error on the very next rally, not only gave the service back to the Highlanders, but also opened up the door for Radford to storm back and tie the match up at 11-11 on yet another Runnin' Bulldog error.
Refusing to give in, the Runnin' Bulldogs took their turn in the set of runs, using a 10-1 run to take a 21-12 lead on a Cockrell kill.
A kill by Radford's Carlin stopped the run and jump started Radford's turn, who battled back with a 12-3 run of their own to knot the set up at 24-24.
The two teams' again traded points over the next four rallies, as an Evans' kill tied the set up for the seventh time at 26-26.
Like in set two, it was the Highlanders not the Runnin' Bulldogs who finished the set out strong, as Radford picked up a kill and then a service ace by Wiechecki to escape with the 28-26 set win and take a 2-1 match lead.
Looking to tie the match up at two sets apiece and force a fifth and decisive set, Gardner-Webb battled the Highlanders in a seesaw affair, until a Cockrell kill put the home team on top by one at 10-9.
After Radford took the lead at 12-10 on three straight points, Gardner-Webb clawed their way back in front at 16-15 with a 6-3 run, capped off by a Molly Rhyne kill.
The Highlanders answered with a 6-2 run to retake the lead at 20-17 and force a GWU timeout.
Out of the timeout, Gardner-Webb fought their way back into the set, retaking the lead at 24-23 and once more at 25-24.
Radford was once more able to finish the set out with back-to-back points by way of a kill and an ace to take the fourth set 28-26 and the match 3-1.
For the second consecutive match, Solano led the way with a season-high 14 kills, while Cockrell finished 13 kills and 12 total blocks. Seniors Evans and Wilcox each recorded nine kills apiece, while Evan Moffitt totaled 19 digs and one ace for the match.
Radford's Wiechecki totaled a match-high 19 kills and three aces, while Emma Deininger added 12 kills in the four set win.
Both Gardner-Webb (10-19, 5-9 Big South) and Radford (15-14, 9-5 Big South) will now set their sights on the 2011 Big South Volleyball Championship next week on November 17-19th hosted by Charleston Southern in Charleston, S.C.
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| Box Score: Radford 3, Gardner-Webb 1 |
