DECATUR, Ga. -- The Covenant volleyball team saw its program-record conference regular season win streak come to an end on Saturday, but the Scots rebounded to earn a split in a USA South tri-match at Agnes Scott. Covenant fell in five sets (30-28, 25-20, 18-25, 19-25, 15-12) to Huntingdon in the opener before defeating Agnes Scott in four sets (13-25, 25-10, 25-17, 25-20) in the finale.
Covenant (6-10, 4-1 USA South) had won a program-record 17 consecutive USA South regular season matches before falling to Huntingdon.
vs. Huntingdon
For a second straight match Covenant fell behind by two sets, rallied to force a fifth set, then fell in the deciding game as Huntingdon would hang on for the five-set victory.
Lindsey Stephens tied a career-high with 13 kills and posted a .379 hitting percentage to lead the way for Covenant. Sophie Puertas had 26 assists and eight digs, while Hannah Harris had nine kills and 16 digs. Hannah Stewart led the Scots with 20 digs and Allie Jakes added seven kills and four blocks.
Covenant fell 30-28 in the opening set as the Scots and Hawks went back-and-forth as the teams combined for 18 ties and 10 lead changes. The Scots had game-point at 28-27 after a Stephens kill, but Huntingdon scored the final three points to take the win and then would win the second set.
The Scots rallied back with strong third and fourth set efforts. Covenant had 14 kills in the fourth set and had a comfortable lead for the majority of the game.
In the fifth, Covenant trailed 4-1 early on but responded with an 8-5 run to tie the score at 9-9 after a solo block from Harris. After a kill from Meriel Chupp cut a slim Huntingdon margin to one (12-11), the Hawks got a clutch kill from Shelby McAllister to go ahead by two and would score two of the final three points to earn the win.
Riley Howe also had seven kills for Covenant. The Scots had a 54-48 edge in total kills over Huntingdon, but committed 14 service errors in the loss.
Huntingdon (13-6, 4-0 USA South) was led by Amy Tyma's 18 kills and 20 digs.
vs. Agnes Scott
Covenant regrouped in the second match and overcame a sluggish start to defeat the host Scotties in four sets.
Stephens was again the catalyst for the Scots as she tallied 10 kills and four blocks. Sara Delk also had 10 kills to go along with 13 digs. Puertas recorded 31 assists and seven digs, while Harris and Jakes had nine kills apiece. Emily Moore had 13 digs and Stewart added 11.
Agnes Scott (2-14, 0-4 USA South) took the first set in convincing fashion by a 25-13 score. The Scotties hit .421 with 10 kills as a team in the frame to take a 1-0 match lead.
Covenant responded in a big way in the second set. The Scots produced 15 kills and hit at a .333 clip to ease past Agnes Scott 25-10. Covenant continued that trend through the final two sets as the Scots tallied 11 kills in the third and 13 in the fourth to come away with the four-set victory.
Alexa Spurling totaled four kills, five service aces and four blocks in the win. Spurling had nine aces over the two matches.
Paige Heck led Agnes Scott with 16 kills.
UP NEXT
Covenant will travel to USA South foe Berea on Wednesday. First serve is set for 6 p.m.
CONNECT WITH THE SCOTS
Be sure to follow the Scots all season long on athletics.covenant.edu and on social media at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for up-to-date scores, news and other information. To receive text alerts with score updates or e-newsletters, click here
