CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The lone Royals senior,
Alison Williams (Rougemont, N.C., Northern Durham), picked up her 100th career kill on Senior Day Saturday afternoon, as the Royals swept Converse
(25-15; 25-18; 25-10) and are now just one win away from securing a home playoff game.
With a traffic jam in the three through six spots in the
Conference Carolinas standings, the Royals needed the win to stay in contention for hosting a playoff game.
Controlling every aspect of the action, the Royals tallied a team season-high .373 hitting percentage. Leading the way was Williams, who's five kills came on seven attacks for a match-high .714 hitting percentage.
Keri Kemp (Lake Mary, Fla., Lake Mary) and
Brittany Harvey (Matthews, N.C., Sun Valley ) and also contributed match-highs with 15 and 11 kills, respectivley.
Avery Moore (Arlington, Texas, Lamar) finished the match with 34 assists, her sixth consecutive match with 34-plus assists, and tied her career high with two blocking assists.
The ferocious Royals defense accumulated 11 total blocks and held the Valkyries to a .049 hitting percentage. A major part of their defensive stability was the ability of a variety of players to find the ball after the attack, as seven Royals had three-plus digs on the day.
Sweeping the Valkyries allows the Royals to begin preparation for their
make-up game at Barton College tomorrow. With Barton looking to create a four-way tie for third place, the Royals will need a win to guarantee a home game in round one of the conference tournament.
Hosting a tournament game is something the Royals have looked forward to all year.
"We'll spend some time today and tomorrow reviewing and refocusing in preparation for the match," said McGuire. "With a win, we'll host the first round and that has been our goal all season."
Tie-breaker scenarios will be available as they become available this evening.
Today's win also puts the Royals in position to win their 20th game of the season tomorrow – a feat not accomplished by the Royals since 1992 when they finished 22-15.
The action kicks off tomorrow at 2:00 p.m.
