GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - The Brevard volleyball team suffered a shocking loss at the hands of Tusculum on Friday night, falling in a 3-0 match in South Atlantic Conference play.
The Pioneers (7-8, 6-1 SAC) took a hard-fought 26-24 win in the first set before sweeping the match with two identical 25-11 wins, holding the Brevard (8-6, 2-5 SAC) offense to just 11 kills and 15 attack errors over the final two sets. Tusculum hit .242 with 38 kills on the evening, continuing a trend in which every opponent to defeat Brevard this season has hit above a .200 clip.
The Tornados, however, were held to their worst offensive showing of the season. The team's 23 kills and 19 assists were season lows, while its .042 attack percentage marked the first time Brevard has been held below .133 all season. The last time the Tornados had a lower offensive output was in a 3-0 loss at Anderson on November 1, 2013, a match in which Brevard was stymied by a Trojans' defense that allowed the Tornados to hit just .010.
Megan Hasse had a productive outing for Tusculum, compiling a match-high 10 kills and recording six digs. Hannah Berling distributed 23 assists, while three Pioneers had two blocks apiece. Brevard was paced by libero Aleksandra Vrvilo, who had a match-high 19 digs. Savannah Cox and Hannah Elmore led the offense with six kills each.
The Pioneers won a crucial first set that saw six ties and three lead changes. Brevard built a six-point advantage in the early going, but Tusculum countered with a 7-1 run that tied the score at 13. The teams traded points until the Tornados built a four-point lead late in the set. Tusculum again countered, this time scoring five consecutive times to take a 24-23 lead. Hannah Elmore tied the score with a kill, but two straight Pioneer kills ended the set.
The final two sets progressed in a much different fashion. The Pioneers took the lead for good in the second set on a Brevard attack error to make the score 7-6. They would never trail again in the match. After trailing 6-5 early on, Tusculum ended the set on a 19-6 run, then scored 14 of the first 17 points in the third set to take control of the match.
Brevard will attempt to bounce back tomorrow as the Tornados travel to Mars Hill for a 2:00 p.m. tilt with the Lions.
Featured image courtesy of Neil Hayes. Click here to view more photos by Neil.
