Milledgeville, GA – Southern Wesleyan fell to the Georgia College Bobcats 3-2 in a five set thriller. The Warriors came out quickly as they won the first two sets of the afternoon, but the Bobcats countered to claim the final three and take the match.
The Warriors totaled 58 kills compared to the 65 kills the Bobcats put down. Freshman Karson Haley led the team with 14 kills while Angel Jimenez was right on her heels with 11. Micheala Andress totaled nine kills, and both Gracie Wilson and Sarah Mitchell had eight. Hannah Wilson collected 23 of the 54 assists during the match. She was followed by both Amiyah Spann and Katie Fulton with 10. Mitchell had two aces.
Of the 76 digs during the game, libero Kristina Pino had 19. She was closely followed by Micheala Andress with 17. Southern Wesleyan blocked the ball seven times. Gracie Wilson was involved in four of the blocks. Andress, Karson Haley and Sarah Mitchell each had three blocks.
Match Vitals
Set One Final: Southern Wesleyan 27, Georgia College 25
Set Two Final: Southern Wesleyan 25, Georgia College 21
Set Three Final: Georgia College 25, Southern Wesleyan 18
Set Four Final: Georgia College 26, Southern Wesleyan 24
Set Five Final: Georgia College 15, Southern Wesleyan 13
Records: Southern Wesleyan (0-1) Georgia College (1-0)
How It Happened
Set One
The Bobcats struck quickly in the first set off a kill by Cadence Spilotros, but the Warriors countered with a kill by Karson Haley to tie the set right back up. Georgia College regained the lead, but a kills by Sarah Mitchell and Gracie Wilson tied the set up 4-4. Back-to-back kills by Sarah Pipping and Riese Johnson put the Bobcats on top by two. The Warriors would not let up as kills by Sarah Mitchell kept them in striking distance. Megan Gilliland, Michaela Andress and Haley each put down kills for the Warriors to propel them back within one point of the Bobcats. The Warriors maintained the intensity as a kill by Karson Haley allowed the Warriors to regain the lead. Georgia College answered with kills by Rosa Fisher and Sarah Pipping, however a kill by Karson Haley extended the Warriors lead to 24-22. The Bobcats were not done as kills by Camryn Carlton and Nya Warren allowed them to tie the set back up 24-24. An attack error by the Bobcats and a kill by Megan Gilliland allowed the Warriors to take a one point lead. Angel Jimenez served an ace to give the Warriors the 27-25 first set victory.
Set Two
The Warriors started strong in the second set as Sarah Mitchel collected a pass from Hannah Wilson and laid down a kill. However, the Bobcats answered with a kill by Hayley Shepherd. They pushed ahead with a kill by Sarah Pipping and an ace by Ella Harper. Karson Haley laid down a kill, but a block by Pipping and Shepherd allowed the Bobcats to regain their three point lead. Hannah Wilson set the ball over the net to surprise the Bobcats and get a kill. Southern Wesleyan went on a run as they scored five points in a row to give them the lead. A kill Angel Jimenez extended the Warriors lead to 16-13. They continued to distance themselves with kills by Gracie Wilson, Jimenez and Megan Gilliland. Southern Wesleyan would not back down on their attacks as Karson Haley put the ball down for a kill that allowed them to extend their lead to 22-20. Georgia College attacked the net once again, but an assisted block by Karson Haley and Sarah Mitchell allowed the Warriors to take a 24-20 point lead. The Bobcats attacked again, but another kill by Jimenez allowed the Warriors to claim a 25-21 point victory in set two.
Set Three
Southern Wesleyan took the first point of set three off an attack error by the Bobcats. A strong rally in the battle for the second point ended in a point for the Warriors as Karson Haley and Sarah Mitchell blocked the Bobcats final attack on the net. The Bobcats countered to tie the game up 2-2 off a kill by Hayley Shepherd. Georgia College once again challenged, but Gracie Wilson and Karson Haley formed a wall to block the Bobcats attack from paying off. Amiyah Spann laid down a service ace to put them on top 7-6. The Bobcats fought back as blocks by Rosa Fisher and Nya Warren, and a kill by Fisher allowed them to come back to within one point of the Warriors. Georgia College would not relent their attacks as Sarah Pipping laid down back-to-back kills to put them ahead by two. Sarah Mitchell got the ball just over the net for an ace to put the Warriors back within two. The Bobcats pushed further ahead with a kill by Pipping. An assisted block by Hayley Shepherd and Sierra Piland allowed Georgia College to take the third set in a 25-18 final score.
Set Four
The Warriors charged out of the gate as Karson Haley put down a kill early on in the set. However, a kill by Rosa Fisher allowed the Bobcats to tie the set up 3-3. Southern Wesleyan responded as Gracie Wilson put down a kill off a pass by Katie Fulton. The Bobcats regained the momentum off an assisted block by Nya Warren and Kyeli Hazzard. The Warriors would not back down as Gracie Wilson drilled the ball down for back-to-back kills. Michaela Andress drilled the ball down for a kill that allowed the Warriors to come to within three points. Georgia College continued to push ahead, but Angel Jimenez laid down another kill to put the Warriors behind the Bobcats 16-12. The Warriors continued to push with kills by Karson Haley and Jimenez, and an ace by Sarah Mitchell. Gracie Wilson and Micheala Andress blocked another attack by the Bobcats, but Georgia College countered with a kill by Sarah Pipping to put them on top 22-18. Mitchell killed the ball to put the Warriors back within two. Micheala Andress swung hard on the outside to get the kill to put Southern Wesleyan behind Georgia College 24-23. Another kill by Karson Haley tied the set up at twenty-four points apiece, but Georgia College pushed on to take the fourth set 26-24.
Set Five
Georgia College took the first point of the final set of the match after the Bobcats blocked an attack by Karson Haley. However, Katie Fulton was able to get the ball over Angel Jimenez on the next play to lay down a kill to tie the set. The Bobcats pushed on as Rosa Fisher and Nya Warren blocked another Warrior attack. Gracie Wilson laid down a kill to keep the Warriors within four, but seconds later Rosa Fisher put down a kill herself to regain Georgia College's five point lead. Gracie Wilson would not relent as she collected a pass from Amiyah Spann and put down another kill. Michaela Andress and Wilson blocked an attack by Sarah Pipping to put Southern Wesleyan back within three points of Georgia College. The Warriors continued their run as Megan Gilliland got up and laid down a kil to tie the game up 10-10. Sarah Mitchell and Micheala Andress went up to block another one of the Georgia College attacks. However, a kill by Sarah Pipping allowed the Bobcats to claim a 15-13 point victory.
What's Next
Southern Wesleyan will wrap up the Bobcat Classic tomorrow as they take on the Lee Flames at 9 am before facing the Albany State Golden Rams at 4:30 pm. The Warriors will host their first match of the season on September 11 as they welcome the Columbia College Koalas to Historic Tysinger Gymnasium at 6 pm. They will then return to the road as they travel to Emory, VA to take on Emory & Henry on September 13.
