• Senior Kristin Heldt shattered her previous career-high with 28 kills on the night
• Junior setter Gabi Mirand distributed a career-best 57 assists and added 12 digs
• The Panthers staved off six match points in the final frame but could not come up with the win
HIGH POINT, N.C. – Despite career performances from Kristin Heldt and Gabi Mirand, the High Point University volleyball team could not knock off Campbell, falling to the visiting Camels in five sets (25-23, 17-25, 25-9, 21-25, 23-25) Friday night at the Millis Center.
Heldt shattered her previous career high of 22 kills, knocking down a match-high 28 while adding 12 digs to post her 11th double-double of the season. Mirand distributed a career-best 57 assists while contributing 12 digs and three kills on the night.
The Panthers staved off six match points in the marathon fifth set and had a trio of chances to win it late, but Campbell ultimately prevailed, 25-23, in the final frame.
“We had a great environment – the fans were very into the match,” head coach Jason Oliver said. “For a fall break match, it was a very exciting atmosphere. Both teams had opportunities to win it at the end and it just came down to executing at the right moment at the right time. It’s something our team will learn from and we’ll be able to move forward next week when we play two more home matches.”
HPU held advantages in kills (67-57), assists (64-53) and digs (86-82), but was out-hit by Campbell, .218-.170. The Camels also were +2.5 (9.5-7.0) in blocks for the match.
Freshman Haley Barnes chipped in 16 kills and a career-high 14 digs to notch her first career double-double, while fellow freshman Camryn Freiberg added 11 kills and hit .360 on the night. Junior defensive specialist Wavie Chin led the HPU back line with 24 digs.
The Panthers won a back-and-forth opening set, 25-23. High Point opened a 15-10 lead midway through the frame before Campbell battled back to tie the score at 20-20. The two teams traded points until a kill by Haley Barnes and a service ace by Wavie Chin gave the Panthers a two-point advantage. Barnes and Heldt led High Point with six kills each in the set with Barnes hitting an impressive .462 in the frame. Gabi Mirand had 12 assists in the set, one more than the Camels had as a team.
Campbell jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the second set and never relinquished it, winning by a score of 25-17 to even the match at one set apiece. The Camels outhit High Point, .364-.194, and took advantage of six HPU attack errors in the set. Heldt led HPU with five kills and Mirand had 12 assists for the Panthers.
Coming out of the break, High Point rolled to a 25-9 win to take a 2-1 lead for the match. The Panthers hit .355 for the set compared to .067 for Campbell. Heldt led the way for HPU, hitting .857 and notching six kills.
High Point nearly rallied from a nine-point deficit in the fourth set before ultimately falling by a score of 25-21. HPU trailed by nine, 21-12, before scoring 12 of the next 15 points to pull within three at 24-21. The Camels called a timeout heading into their third set point and won the set out of the break. Heldt had six more kills to pace the Panthers who hit .100 for the set.
The Panthers had four match points in the final set, but dropped the final two points of the frame. HPU is now 2-6 in five set matches on the year.
HPU returns to action with a pair of home matches next weekend. The Panthers host UNC Asheville on Halloween at 7 p.m. and match up with Gardner Webb on November 1 at 2 p.m.