College Volleyball Final – Roanoke 3, Guilford 2

SALEM, Va. – Kylah Blackmore put down 28 kills to rally Roanoke College past visiting Guilford College, 3-2, in Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) volleyball play Wednesday night.

The Maroons (7-11, 3-4 ODAC) won the first game, 25-16, before Guilford (9-6, 4-3 ODAC) took the next two, 25-21 and 25-19. Roanoke raced to an 18-10 lead in the fourth set before forcing a fifth set with a 25-19 win. The hosts raced to a 5-1 lead in the decisive set and won the final four points of the match for a 15-9 victory that avenged an earlier loss this year to the Quakers.

Blackmore had three kills in the fifth set and seven in the fourth. She made only two errors in 57 attacks for an improbable .456 hitting percentage. Blackmore also picked up 18 digs and had a block. Ryan Hedgepeth picked up 37 digs and Christen Zammit contributed 48 assists for the Maroons, who hit .154 for the match, but no lower than .220 in the final two sets. Logan Graves and Meagan Smith added six kills apiece.

Christian Ritter, Jessica Sheek, and Morgan Tompkins each had 16 kills for Guilford. Sheek hit .325 and also had three blocks. Ritter added a team-best 29 digs and Tompkins picked up 19 Roanoke attacks. Sophomore setter Tina Eucker led all students with 49 assists.

Coach Emily Gann’s Quakers host Johnson & Wales University (N.C.) Friday night at 7:00 p.m. in the Ragan-Brown Field House.