GREENWOOD – The Lander volleyball team rallied from a two-set deficit on Saturday afternoon, but fell to Flagler in a 20-25, 23-25, 25-15, 25-18, 10-15 loss at Horne Arena.
With the win, Flagler (8-3, 2-1 PBC) earned its second consecutive five-set road win in conference play, while Lander (9-4, 2-3 PBC) dropped its third consecutive PBC contest.
“It was a really hard-fought match,” said head coach Ashley White. “It didn’t necessarily end the way we anticipated or wanted, but I think it showed a lot of the heart and lot of the fight that our team has.”
Lander out-hit Flalger .148 to .120. The loss was Lander’s first five-set loss of the season, while the Saints improved to 3-0 in five-set matches.
Senior Kirstin Martindale tallied a double-double with a team-high 15 kills and 15 digs, while junior Sophia Perkins regiesterd 28 assists and 18 digs. Sophomore Hannah McManus led the Bearcats with a career-high 36 digs.
After falling in two tightly contested sets, Lander opened the third set on an 8-2 run, punctuated by a kill from Imari Ashley. The Saints never pulled closer than five points as Lander cruised to a 25-15 win. The Bearcats trailed 9-7 in the fourth set, but took advantage of three Saint attack errors and another Ashley kill to pull ahead 11-9. Lander never relinquished the lead, earning a 25-18 win to force a fifth set.
Flagler took the first four points of the fifth set and never trailed, clinching the match on a Sara Davis kill.
Up next, Lander will make its second conference road trip of the season, traveling to USC Aiken on Wednesday, Oct. 4 for a 7:00 p.m. match.
