MOUNT OLIVE, NC – The Emmanuel Women's Volleyball team traveled to Mount Olive, NC to take on the University of Mount Olive in a tough conference matchup. The Lions were tested early, winning the first set, 25-18 but falling in the next two, 25-20, 25-23. Emmanuel roared back to take the final two sets, 25-12, 15-13 to earn the 3-2 win on the road. With the win, the Lions improve to 8-5 overall, 4-1 in conference play.

In the first set, the Lions jumped out to an early 5-2 lead on kills by Cailin Pritchard, Ellie Jackson and Marusa Pesut. The Trojans tied things at 6-6 and the teams traded points and the lead until midway through the set. The Lions retook the lead, 13-12 on a kill by Natalie Wilson and led the rest of the way. The Trojans kept things close, getting within two points of the lead but the Lions finished strong to earn the 25-18 set one win. 

The Lions kept the momentum going into set two, starting out strong with a 4-1 lead. The Trojans responded well, tying the game up at 4 and taking their first lead of the set on a kill. The teams traded points and the lead until a 5-0 run for the Trojans gave Mount Olive a 13-8 lead. The Lions tied things at 14, with kills by Jackson and Isabella Reyes but the Trojans retook the lead and finished strong to earn the 25-20 win in set two. 

The Lions took an early 4-1 lead in set three. The Trojans responded well to tie the set at 9-9, taking the lead on a service ace, 10-9. The two teams went back and forth, until the Trojans took the lead late in the set, 19-18.   The Lions tied things up again at 22 on a kill by Pesut, but the Trojans closed out the set strong to win it, 25-23. 

The Lions were down, but definitely not out. Emmanuel jumped out to a 5-2 lead to start the set on kills by Natalie Wilson and an ace by Asia Queen. A 5-0 run for the Lions pushed their lead to 10-4 on kills by Isabel Miller, Jackson, and Pritchard. The Lions continued on a 7-0 run to go up 16-5. The Lions kept on a run, with kills by Jackson and Brooke Lee to give the Lions the set four win, 25-12. 

Set five saw the teams trade points and the lead early. The Lions took a 6-4 lead on an attack error by the Trojans but Mount Olive rallied to retake the lead, 7-6. The Lions took the lead for good on a kill by Jackson to make it 12-11, Emmanuel. Another kill by Jackson and an attack error by the Trojans made it 14-11, Lions, but Mount Olive quickly cut the Lions lead to one point, 14-13. A bad set by the Trojans however, gave the Lions the match point to win the set, 15-13 and the game, 3-2. 

Overall, the Lions had 63 kills, 50 assists, 5 aces, 76 digs, and 7 blocks. 

Ellie Jackson had a career night, hitting a milestone of 100 career aces. She finished the night with 22 kills to lead the team, with Natalie Wilson adding 14. Marusa Pesut had 43 assists on the night with Isabel Miller and Sami Gambill each collecting 2 aces. Cailin Pritchard had 2 blocks to lead the team, while four Lions ended the night with double digit digs, with Marusa Pesut leading the way with 18. 

Next up, the Lions will travel to Wilson, NC to face Barton College tomorrow at 11AM. For more information on Emmanuel University athletics, visit goeulions.com.