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RALEIGH, NC – The William Peace University volleyball team was back at the Hermann Athletic Center on Saturday for their first two USA South conference matches of the year.  WPU dropped their opening match of the day against Piedmont in five before bouncing back to sweep North Carolina Wesleyan.

The Pacers (7-4, 1-1 USAS) got off to a quick start against Piedmont, grabbing the momentum with an early 7-0 run on their way to a 25-13 win in the first. Piedmont held on in tightly contested second set though, 26-24, to even things up at one set apiece. WPU racked up 16 kills and grabbed a 2-1 lead in the third set, 25-21, but Piedmont found their stride late in the fourth and closed the Pacers out 25-16, 15-9.

Liana Solomon and Laura Bland led the attack for WPU. Solomon recorded a triple-double of 28 assists, 17 digs and 10 kills. Bland finished with a team high 15 kills, 11 digs, three block assists and a pair of service aces.

Tempestt Frazier also had double figure kills (11) to go along with five block assists, while Kennedey Paine chipped in with 20 assists and seven digs. Carson Williams registered 34 digs, three assists and a service ace. Maddie Irvin also added 12 digs and a pair of service aces.

Taylor Cramsey shouldered the majority of the load for Piedmont with 22 kills, 23 digs, four service aces and a block assist. Emily Peters also had an impressive game with 51 assists and eight digs.

WPU was in the driver's seat for the most part against NC Wesleyan (3-6, 0-2 USAS), but they just did narrowly close thing out in the third, 29-27. The Pacers took the first set, 25-19, followed by a 25-13 win in the second. 

Bland led the way once again with 14 kills, three digs and two block assists.  Connor Davis added eight kills at a .400 clip to go along with five digs and two block assists, while Frazier had seven kills and six block assists. Paine recorded a team high 19 assists and 12 digs. Solomon also had another all-around game with 15 assists, 8 digs and five kills. Williams also contributed 16 more digs, four assists and a service ace.

The WPU volleyball team will be back in action this week for a pair of conference home matches starting at 7:00 p.m. The Pacers host Methodist on Tuesday, followed by a rematch against NC Wesleyan on Thursday.

For the latest news and updates from William Peace University Athletics, please visit: http://gopeacepacers.com/.


         

WPU vs. NC Wesleyan


WPU vs. Piedmont