Raleigh, NC -- William Peace University volleyball fell in five sets to Averett University in the USA South East Division Championship. The Pacers got into an early deficit to trail 2-0, but would battle back in an impressive manner in the third and fourth sets to force a fifth set. The Pacers finish the season 14-2 overall.

THE BASICS

• Final score:  William Peace 2, Averett 3
• Records: William Peace (14-2), Averett (13-6)
• Location: Raleigh, NC

HOW IT HAPPENED
Set One (22-25)
The Cougars would get off to a hot start, grabbing 5 in a row to lead 5-0. A few attack errors and a kill from Nancy Gamewell would get WPU on the board, but Averett would continue to hold the momentum as they led 13-3. The Pacers would go on a run to bring the score to 16-12, with a kill by Hannah Collier bringing the score to 22-18. The Cougars, however, would hold on to their early momentum to win 25-22.

Set Two (23-25)
In set two, a service ace would give the Cougars an early 5-2 lead. Kills from Landis Limon and Brienna Laskowski would bring the Pacers within two as they trailed 9-7. The Pacers would battle back near the end of the set, with a few attack errors and a kill by Hannah Collier bringing the score to 24-23, but the Cougars would notch the final point of the set to win 25-23 and take a 2-0 lead in the game.

Set Three (25-19)
The Cougars would again take an early 7-3 lead, but a run by the Pacers with a few service aces by Abby Benton would give WPU a 9-7 advantage. A kill by Brittany Carpenter would bring the score to 16-13, with WPU going on a late run to lead 23-17. A final kill by Landis Limon would give the Pacers a 25-19 win as they trailed 2-1 in the game.

Set Four (25-18)
The Pacers would take the early lead this set, leading 4-1 on a few attack errors and a service ace by Brienna Laskowski. Averett would take a brief 10-7 lead before WPU would tie it 16-16 on an attack error and taking an 18-16 lead on another error and a kill by Hannah Collier. Landis Limon and Brittany Carpenter would notch the final kills of the set to win 25-18 and tie the game 2-2.

Set Five (4-15)
In the final set, the Pacers would take an early 4-2 lead on kills from Nancy Gamewell, Brienna Laskowski, and Hannah Collier. However, the Cougars would then go on an impressive 13-point run, securing the set 15-4 and the game 3-2 over the Pacers.

PACER TOP PERFORMERS

• Brienna Laskowski led the team with 12 kills and 14 digs.
• Brittany Carpenter tallied 35 assists, while Landis Limon added 11 blocks.

FOR THE FOES

• Zamyiah Mangum led the Cougars with 17 kills.
• McKenzie Miller added 45 assists.

This concludes the 2021 season for the Pacers - thank you to seniors Abby Benton, Brittany Carpenter, Bergin Gillespie, and Brienna Laskowski for your leadership and the impact you have had on the program!

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