Lynchburg Outlasts Volleyball in ODAC Quarterfinals
Moore & Alcantara led the Quakers in dog fight for comeback win in set three before falling to Hornets in four sets
from Reagan Hune, Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant
LYNCHBURG, VA– Natalie Moore (Talbott, Tenn.) with 17.0 points and eight digs and Chrisbel Alcantara (San Juan, P.R.), who had 14.0 points with a .273 clip shine as the fifth-seed Guilford College volleyball team was upended by the University of Lynchburg, fourth-seed, in a gentleman’s sweep, (17-25, 17-25, 27-25, 23-25) in the Turner Gymnasium on Wednesday night.
Guilford concludes their season at .500 with a record of 13-13, 7-5 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) while Lynchburg advances to the ODAC Semifinals for the first time since 2016 with a 19-11 record, 9-4 in the ODAC.
Stars of the show for the Quakers included Moore tallying game-high 15 terminations, right behind her was Alcantara garnering 14 kills, and Vanessa Johnson (Charlotte, N.C.) with seven kills. Maddi Page (Jonesboro, Ga.) finished with 37 assists paired with 14 digs while teammate Madison Bozarth (Greensboro, N.C.) took control of the back row with 23 digs.
Key contributors for the Hornets were Kailey Keough with team-high 14 kills, Ava Meinhardt earning ten kills, and Bree Spainhour with nine kills. Jaina Leek led the Hornets to victory with game-high 40 assists while Morgan Clarke was the defensive director of UofL with game-high 26 digs alongside six assists.
The match between GC and UofL was closely contested, with key contributions from Page, along with aces by Moore and Amber Chiarolanzio (Deep Gap, N.C.). Moore also added a crucial kill to keep the teams evenly matched. Vanessa Johnson, who ended with 8.0 points on a .211 clip, amped up the pressure with a kill. Keough, Meinhardt, and Spainhour rallied the Hornets to continue to go round-for-round with the Quakers. Alcantara, Kaci Johnson (Winterville, N.C.), and Madison Duvall (Sophia, N.C.) made their mark before UofL scored three unanswered-points before the 4-1 run by Guilford. Moore attempted to turn things around, however, the GC errors and kills from Tori Williamson, who had 14 digs and seven kills, and Meinhardt sealing the set win, 25-17.
Guilford had a hesitant beginning in set two as Lynchburg jumped to an 8-0 lead. Moore ended the drought with a kill followed by a kill from Kaci Johnson and a Lynchburg attacking error. The 4-1 Guilford run was credited to Vanessa Johnson, Moore, and Page to make it 15-10. The Hornets returned the favor with their own 5-1 run. Efforts from Duvall, Moore, and two-consecutive kills from Alcantara slowed the opposing run, but the Lynchburg squad won the set with a score of 25-17.
Alcantara was in her bag in the third with seven kills. She, along with Moore, started things off for the Quakers before the 7-1 extension from UofL thanks to Leah DiNardo and Keough. Things picked up for Guilford as points from Moore, Vanessa Johnson, and Alcantara rolled in. The Quakers soon seized the opportunity to exploit the Hornets’ mistakes and tied it 15 all including a block from Duvall and Page. Keough, DiNardo, and friends made contributions, but was knocked on their heels by Alcantara as she scored the next four GC points. Moore then added a critical kill to tie it at 24. Meinhardt tried to shift the momentum, but the thrilling kills from Vanessa Johnson and Zoe Whisnant (Greensboro, N.C.) clinched the set win, 27-25.
It was a tight contest in the final set, but it started with the 5-2 advancement from UofL. Moore contributed with a kill and an ace, while Vanessa Johnson added another kill, bringing the score to 10-8 in Lynchburg’s favor. Page joined the party before the next three of four points were Moore’s. Spainhour and company duked it out with Vanessa Johnson and Alcantara alongside UofL errors before Lynchburg claimed victory of the set to make it 25-23. The Quakers showed resilience, however, Lynchburg prevailed with a final match score of 3-1. The Hornets survive and advance to play first-seed Washington & Lee on Thursday, November 14th in the ODAC semifinals.
This concludes the 2024 season of Guilford College Volleyball.