Samford volleyball completed a comeback defeating Southern Conference (SoCon) opponent UNC Greensboro 3-2 in five sets Friday, Oct. 24, at the Pete Hanna Center. The game came down to the wire with Samford taking a victory from the brink of defeat.
Samford entered the match 8-12 (3-5 in the Southern Conference) for the season following a 3-0 home defeat to Furman the previous evening. UNC Greensboro came in 17-7 (5-3 in SoCon) and had the hope that history would repeat itself after beating Samford in September 3-0.
The Spartans controlled the first set from start to finish, taking the set 25-17 behind McKenna Timmerman’s six kills and seven points.
The Bulldogs bounced back, winning 25-21 and eliminating any of the Spartans’ hopes of another sweep. Picking up on that momentum, Samford captured the third set 25-20 lead, bringing the match to 2-1 on the backs of Kaligh Merrit and Ally Cordes.
The Spartans, however, did not give up. In the fourth set, UNCG constructed a 17-12 lead. The Bulldogs mounted a late charge closing the gap to two points, but the Spartans hung on for a 25-23 win and a fifth set.
The final set UNCG took the lead to 14-11, bringing the Spartans a point away from victory. Thinking they won the ensuing play, UNCG players began celebrating on the court before Samford’s Head Coach Keylor Chan challenged the final play of the game. After a review, the referees deemed an attacking violation towards the Spartans, meaning despite the fans packing up and leaving the match was not over.
The Bulldogs capitalized on this second chance. Samford scored the next three points to stun the Spartans and secure a 3-point comeback, winning the fifth set 16-14 and the game 3-2 in dramatic fashion.
“The best thing is I’m so proud of our team,” Chan said after the game. “They embodied the toughness and grit that we’ve talked about. UNC Greensboro is a great team — they’re playing really well this season — and we knew we were going to be in a fight.”
The match started and finished with senior leaders Merrit and Cordes guiding the team. Merrit tallied 20 kills, 18 digs and 22.5 points, and Cordes added 19 kills, 10 digs and 21 points.
Chan is grateful for his seniors steady play and ability to lead the team on and off the court. “When they do that, it allows us to navigate some of the younger players and help them and work with them. Tonight, they were steady and that really laid the platform for what we need to do moving forward.”
With the victory, Samford is now 9-12 on the season and 4-5 in conference play, sitting in sixth place in the SoCon as the regular season reaches the closing weeks.
The Bulldogs are looking to extend that momentum into their next contest Thursday, Oct. 31, when they head to Johnson City, Tennessee, to face East Tennessee State University.
Sports Editor
