Bluefield Rallies Past Golden Tigers Volleyball

Gainesville, Georgia- The Brenau volleyball team pushed Bluefield (Va.) College, but came up just short (27-29, 21-25, 19-25) in an Appalachian Athletic Conference matchup on Saturday.

In the first set, the Golden Tigers held a commanding 21-12 lead until the Rams scored five consecutive points to cut the score to 21-17. Brenau's Lanier Leonard slowed the rally with a kill to make the score 22-17, however, the visitors scored six of the next seven points to take a 24-23 lead. The Rams again surged past the Golden Tigers to take a 26-25 lead until Rachel Hodges notched two consecutive kills for a 27-26 advantage. Again the Rams answered with a three point run to close out the set.

In the second set, Brenau again took a late advantage as a Bluefield attack error gave the home team an 18-16 lead. Yet again the Rams siezed control of the match with a eight point run to eventually clinch the set. The Rams held momentum into the third set to win 25-19 and close out the victory.

Lanier Leonard led the Golden Tigers with eleven kills and Jordan Diaz posted a team-high 17 digs. MacKenzie Kirby added 12 digs and Nitaira Wilkes had 15 assists.

Brenau closes out the regular season on Tuesday when the team takes on Point (Ga.) University at 6:30 pm in Gainesville, Ga. The team will recognize senior Nitaira Wilkes on Senior Day after the match.