SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Despite an early two-set lead, The Queens University of Charlotte women's volleyball team fell to the Campbell Fighting Camels in a 3-2 hard-fought battle (25-22, 25-16, 20-25, 20-25, 10-15) in the Royals' finale of the Wofford Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 7.
Queens started strong in the first set, taking advantage of several Campbell miscues. A series of attack errors from Campbell's players, particularly Emily Campe and Gwen Wolkow, allowed Queens to build a lead. Kaylin Dowling of Queens also made her mark with back-to-back services ace that put Queens up 10-4 early in the set. Campbell made a push towards the end of the set, coming close at 24-22 with a service ace by Ava Van Groningen, but Queens sealed the set at 25-22 with a final kill by Emma Norris.
The second set began with momentum still in Queens' favor, as Alleigh Johnson delivered a kill right at the start, and Sparks added another soon after. Campbell struggled to find rhythm, with Jordyn Johnson of Queens capitalizing on Campbell's attack errors and Queens pushing the score to 14-9. Queens extended their lead to 23-14 after a series of attack errors by Campbell, and the Royals continued to capitalize. Queens kept Campbell under control with another kill by Johnson and a service ace by Kaylin Dowling. Campbell's errors continued to pile up, and Queens easily took the second set 25-16.
Campbell made adjustments in the third set, starting off with back-to-back kills from Gwen Wolkow to give them a 2-0 lead. Queens responded quickly with kills from A. Johnson and McDuffie, but Campbell held onto their lead. Campbell led 18-13 at one point, thanks to improved blocking and a few service aces. Despite Queens' best efforts including kills from McDuffie and Sparks, Campbell held firm and won the set 25-20.
Campbell continued their resurgence in the fourth set. The set was closely contested early on, with both teams trading points. The Johnson duo kept Queens competitive, but Campbell began pulling away with blocks from Hailey Heytvelt and Campe. Queens' Anna Grace Sparks and Norris made several attempts to claw back, but Campbell's balanced attack helped them secure the set with a 25-20 score.
The final set was a tight back-and-forth battle. Campbell took an early lead at 3-2 thanks to kills from Aley Clent and Abbie Tuyo. Queens kept it close with A. Johnson pushing the Royals' offense, but Campbell's blocking was a major factor. Queens struggled to break down Campbell's defense and the Camels soon took a 9-6 lead. Despite their late surge putting them within four, Queens couldn't recover, and Campbell closed out the match with a 15-10 victory in the final set.
- Queens recorded 55 kills with a hitting percentage of .133 in the match
- Both teams had a strong presence at the net as each squad registered 16 blocks. Emma Norris led Queens with nine blocks.
- The match included 21 ties and 13 lead changes across five sets.
- Anna Grace Sparks picked up another double-double of 15 kills and 18 digs.
UP NEXT
The Royals will head back to the Queen City for their annual Queens Fall Classic presented by Home2Suites next weekend beginning on Sept. 13.
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