CLINTON, S.C. --- Taylor Lillard (Victorville, Calif.) equaled her career-high with 19 kills and Tyra Montour (Kennesaw, Ga.) added 13 smashes, as Presbyterian held on to edge Gardner-Webb in a five-set battle on Saturday afternoon in Big South Conference play.
Presbyterian (4-23, 2-11 Big South) won the match by scores of 25-16, 10-25, 25-18, 21-25 and 15-6, attacking at a .255 clip while limiting Gardner-Webb (9-20, 3-9 Big South) to a hitting percentage of .195. The Blue Hose totaled 58 kills, 60 digs and seven service aces compared to 48 smashes, 55 digs and 10 blocks for Gardner-Webb.
"I am disappointed," said head coach Leo Sayles. "I am disappointed for my players that we could not find the poise we needed to execute in pressure situations. We will have to wait and see what we need to do if we still have hope of making the tournament, and adjust our focus next week."
Lillard paced the Runnin' Bulldogs with 19 kills and a .312 hitting percentage, as Montour added 13 smashes and three blocks. Sydney Marshall (Norcross, Ga.) and Kaeyln Dyson (Holly Springs, N.C.) each chipped in a match-high five blocks, while Tinsley Fain (Boiling Springs, S.C.) and Anna Pashkova (Iowa City, Iowa) tallied 12 and 11 digs, respectively. Pashkova also notched three service aces.
Haile Tripp led the way for Presbyterian with a double-double, recording 14 digs and a match-high 22 kills while attacking at a .425 clip. Samantha Del Toro added 11 kills and seven digs, as Sara Rogers dished out a match-high 49 assists. Lena Gavin and Mikayla Register posted 15 and 12 digs, respectively.
Presbyterian seized control of the first set midway through the frame, breaking an 8-8 tie with 10 straight points to open an 18-10 lead on back-to-back Tripp smashes. The Blue Hose would close out the set from there, scoring six of the frame's final nine points to take a 1-0 advantage in the match.
The Runnin' Bulldogs bounced back in the second, recording 11 of the set's first 14 points to open an 11-3 margin following a Montour smash. After Presbyterian countered with back-to-back points, Gardner-Webb answered with a 10-0 surge to push the advantage to 21-5 on two straight smashes from Marshall.
The Blue Hose would fight off a trio of set points before Gardner-Webb regained control, evening the match at 1-1 following a tandem block by Montour and Marshall.
Presbyterian answered in the third, clawing out to a 13-11 lead following a Tripp smash. The Runnin' Bulldogs would stay within striking distance over the next several minutes, trimming the margin to 18-17 after a PC miscue before the Blue Hose countered with a 7-1 run to close out the set and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Gardner-Webb fought back in the fourth, breaking an early 4-4 deadlock with a 12-8 run to that was capped by a Montour smash. The Runnin' Bulldogs kept pushing, stretching the advantage to 23-16 following a kill by Lillard to finish off a 6-3 spurt.
Presbyterian would chip away over the next several points, trimming the margin to 24-21 and fighting off four set points before the Runnin' Bulldogs closed out the frame on a Montour smash.
The Blue Hose opened the fifth with a 5-1 run and never looked back, pushing the margin to 11-4 on a kill by Ashton Stewart before capping the set and the match on an ace from Stewart.
Gardner-Webb returns to the court on Friday, November 13 when the Runnin' Bulldogs host Radford at 7:00 pm in Paul Porter Arena. The Runnin' Bulldogs will honor their senior class of Devin Judge (Marietta, Ga.), Katie Loftin (Ooltewah, Tenn.), Montour and Pashkova prior to the start of the match.
