NASHVILLE, TN - For seniors
Ava Rebarchik,
Nicole Hughes,
Hallie McGuire,
Braxton Shelton, and
Mariah Jones, Wesleyan's game at Trevecca Nazarene this afternoon would be their last in a Panther uniform. In what was a roller coaster of a game, the Panthers showed poise and composure late, eventually winning in five sets (26-24, 18-25, 25-22, 25-13, 15-12) over the Trojans.
Kentucky Wesleyan closes their season with a record of 7-23 (5-14 G-MAC), while Trevecca Nazarene will finish 13-18 (9-10 G-MAC) and just miss out on the G-MAC tournament.
The opening set saw the Trojans jump out to an 11-5 lead. Taking advantage of multiple errors by TNU, the Panthers came back to tie things up at 16, eventually taking an 18-17 lead on back-to-back kills from
Nicole Hughes and
Claire Lange. Down 24-23, the Panthers rallied off three straight points to come away with the opening set win.
Trevecca Nazarene started the second set much like the first set, jumping out to a 13-6 lead. This time, though, they wouldn't give it up, taking the set 25-18.
Wesleyan held a slight edge in the third set until the Trojans tied it up late at 16-16. That's when a
Nicole Hughes kill sparked a 4-0 run from the Panthers, giving them a 20-16 lead. The pesky Trojans fought to tie it up at 21-all, but an Ace from
Maddie Hanshew, and kills from
Julia Kupper and
Hallie McGuire sealed the 25-22 set victory.
The Panther's didn't hit it bad in the fourth set, notching a 167 hitting percentage, the Trojans were just on fire, hitting it at. .400. They used this strong hitting to win the set 25-13.
With their season coming to a close, Wesleyan saw themselves down 12-11 late in the fifth and final set.
Hallie McGuire was having none of it, as her kill sparked a 4-0 close to the set, giving Wesleyan the big win.
Hallie McGuire led the way with 18 kills, followed by fellow seniors
Nicole Hughes (14) and
Ava Rebarchik (9).
Julia Kupper was all over the court, totalling 44 assists, 14 digs, and five aces. Leading the way in blocks was Rebarchik with three.
Kupper's junior season was an historic one, as her 916 assists is the third most in a single season in Kentucky Wesleyan history. Rebarchik was no slouch either, as her 244 career blocks puts her in eighth all time. Fellow senior
Nicole Hughes now holds the ninth spot in the single season kills list, tallying 302.
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