BREVARD, N.C. - The Brevard College volleyball team (4-13, 2-4 USA South) defeated USA South Conference tri-match host N.C. Wesleyan, 3-1, for its second USA South victory of 2025.
The Tornados dropped the Battling Bishops in a thrilling four-set affair to earn the pivotal road conference win. BC later faced Southern Virginia, falling in straight sets to the Knights.
Brevard 3, NC Wesleyan 1 (25-21, 25-22, 16-25, 27-25)
Freshman outside hitter
Malahna Hoyle matched her season high of 12 kills, hitting .259 for the match.
Abigail Kelly,
Caroline Moon, and
Jaxson Tumicki each delivered seven kills apiece, while
Izzy Boulay facilitated the strong offensive effort with 31 assists and notched a double-double totaling 13 digs. Moon racked up a team-best 19 digs, while
Emma Fontana controlled the net with three solo blocks.
Brevard and NC Wesleyan battled through the early stages of the first set before the Tornados opened up a five-point advantage with a 5-1 scoring run. The Tornados were able to keep the Battling Bishops at bay for the remainder of the first stanza, pulling through with the four-point set win. The Tornado offense hit .381 in the first set with nine kills in 21 total attacks, with just one offensive error. The frame was capped off by a Kelly kill, her third of the first set.
BC got off to a strong start in the second set, scoring eight of the first 11 points. The Tornados were able to open up a seven-point cushion, 21-14, and withstood a late rally from the tri-match hosts to secure a three-point victory in the second stanza, capped with another set-clinching kill from Kelly.
NC Wesleyan answered early in the third set, as the Battling Bishops opened the set up with an eight-point, 14-6 edge. BC answered with a 6-2 scoring run that cut the deficit down to four points and forced a NCW timeout. The hosts settled down following the break and scored nine of the final 15 points to take the nine-point set win.
A neck-and-neck fourth set ensued, with both sides tied at 10 through the 20-point mark. With the Battling Bishops up by two at 13-11, the Tornados put together a pivotal five-point scoring run to go up by three points. NCW was able to fight back and tie the fourth set back up at 20-20 later in the frame.
With the match tied at 24 points apiece, Kelly came through to give BC match point, 25-24. NCW answered with a kill of its own to keep the match going. Hoyle notched a kill that was followed by a Battling Bishop attack error, as the Tornados finished off their second conference win of the season.
NCW was paced through the match by Ashley Hinton, who registered a match-high 13 kills. Brooklynn Covic and Emilee Wilson each had 12 digs, and Wilson totaled a double-double with 27 assists.
Southern Virginia 3, Brevard 0 (25-11, 25-14, 25-17)
Brevard's Hoyle led the way with five kills, while Tumicki added four. Boulay paced BC's attack with 15 assists, while
Lili White chipped in five digs and an ace.
Southern Virginia's Aubrey Packer led all players with 13 kills on .542 hitting, adding one service ace and 15 total points. Anne Downs added eight kills, and Lucy Richins handed out 10 assists and six digs for the Knights, who never trailed in the opening set and hit above .200 in all three frames. Southern Virginia posted an efficient .281 hitting percentage through the second match of the day.
Brevard returns to action next Wednesday, October 8 as the Tornados head to Winston-Salem, N.C. to face Salem College at 6 p.m.
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-BC-
