LEXINGTON, Ky. — Transylvania University volleyball split a Saturday doubleheader at the Clive M. Beck Center, earning a three-set sweep over HCAC opponent Rose-Hulman before falling in four sets to Covenant College. The Pioneers finished the afternoon with a 9-12 overall record and a 1-2 mark in conference play.
Transylvania opened the afternoon with a commanding performance against Rose-Hulman, sweeping the Fightin' Engineers 25-17, 25-19, 25-20 to secure its first HCAC victory of the season. The Pioneers established control early, delivering their most efficient offensive performance of the match in the opening set. Transylvania recorded 18 kills with just two attack errors on 35 attempts, hitting .457 to secure a 25-17 victory.
Transylvania continued its momentum in the second set, holding Rose-Hulman to a .029 hitting percentage while taking a 25-19 win. The Pioneers closed out the sweep with 21 kills in the third set, hitting .317 to secure the final 25-20 margin.
Addie Atcher led the Pioneer attack with a match-high 17 kills on 24 attempts, committing just two errors for an impressive .625 hitting percentage.
Payton Avilez followed with 15 kills, while
Cecelia Roberts added eight kills without an attack error on 21 attempts, hitting .381.
Megan Sweeney directed the Transylvania offense with 34 assists while adding four kills, five digs and a service ace.
Erin Thomas contributed three service aces and seven digs, while
Megan Helander led the defensive effort with 19 digs.
Chloe Jensen provided an efficient presence at the net, recording two kills without an attack error and contributing one solo block and three block assists.
Allison O'Shea added four kills on seven attempts, hitting .429. Transylvania finished with 50 kills, 47 assists, five service aces and 53 digs while hitting .336 as a team. The Pioneers limited Rose-Hulman to a .160 hitting percentage and 32 kills.
The Pioneers returned to the court Saturday evening for a non-conference matchup against Covenant College, battling through four sets before falling 25-22, 25-22, 22-25, 25-15.
The opening set featured seven ties and four lead changes as the two teams battled for momentum. Transylvania recorded 11 kills while hitting .250, but Covenant pulled away late to secure a 25-22 victory.
The second set proved even more competitive, featuring 12 ties and five lead changes. Despite the back-and-forth action, Covenant edged Transylvania 25-22 to take a 2-0 advantage.
Facing a two-set deficit, the Pioneers responded in the third. Transylvania delivered its strongest offensive output of the match, recording 15 kills to secure a 25-22 victory and extend the contest.
Covenant regained control in the fourth set, recording 16 kills while hitting .429 to close out the match with a 25-15 victory.
Payton Avilez led the Transylvania attack with 12 kills, while Atcher followed with 11.
Cecelia Roberts delivered another efficient performance, recording 10 kills with just two errors on 19 attempts to hit a team-best .421.
Peyton Mast added seven kills and three block assists, while
Chloe Jensen contributed four kills and three block assists.
Sweeney directed the Pioneer offense with 34 assists and added 10 digs, recording a double-double.
Soleil Sabin led the defensive effort with 11 digs, while Helander contributed nine digs and two service aces.
Erin Thomas added three service aces.
Transylvania finished with 44 kills, 39 assists, five service aces and 47 digs while hitting .141 as a team. Covenant recorded 54 kills and hit .244 for the match.
Transylvania University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the HCAC. To keep up to date with all of Transylvania Athletics, check out our website at transysports.com and follow @TransySports on Instagram.
