The Emory University volleyball program took back-to-back wins again on Saturday on the final day of the regular season defeating Washington & Lee and Berry on the second day of the Emory Invitational.
The Eagles hold an 18-5 record following the regular season and had a number of seniors post career highs on Saturday. Senior
Kaya Monrose led the offense once again totaling 39 kills on Saturday and 68 total on the weekend including a career-high 21 kills against No. 18 Berry. Teammate
Olivia Rabinowitz also had a career-high 50 assists against Berry after reaching 2,500 career assists on Friday.
Game 1: Emory 3, Washington & Lee 0
The Generals were able to get a jump start in the first set opening with a 7-6 lead but the Eagles quickly responded with four straight points to reclaim a 10-7 advantage. The two teams continued point for point in the set until Emory took their biggest lead of the set with a 17-11 score. Washington & Lee was able to close back in and lower their deficit but kills from Monrose and freshman
Sydney Kennedy shut down the momentum from the Generals and helped the Eagles take set one, 25-21.
Washington & Lee continued battling with Emory with set two seeing four ties before anyone reached the 10-point mark. The Eagles' offense was rolling through the middle of the set going on a 6-5 run, highlighted by five kills, to claim a 16-13 advantage. The Generals were held to just four more points in the set while Kennedy recorded three consecutive service aces before pushing the Eagles to a 25-17 win in the second set.
After Emory opened the third set with a 7-3 run, Washington & Lee fought their way back to a 12-12 tie halfway through the third set. Sophomore
Maria Flynn joined the offense party and registered back to back kills to give the Eagles a 19-16 score. Emory finished with a 6-3 run to clinch their third straight win.
Game 2: Emory 3, Berry 1
A battle ensued in the opening points of the first set against the Vikings with Emory holding a slight 7-6 lead over Berry. The offensive momentum was found again as the Eagles recorded five straight points for a six-point advantage but the Vikings fought their way back to a 21-21 tie towards the end of the set. After a kill from Monrose tied the set again at 23 apiece, the Vikings finished with two straight points to take the first set, 25-23.
The second set saw eight ties before either team reached 10 points but Emory was able to pull away with a 16- 12 lead thanks to attack errors from Berry's offense. The Vikings then found their way back to a 17-17 tie and the next few points went to both sides before the Eagles pulled away again with the lead. Three kills from Monrose and a kill from Rabinowitz clinched the second set with a 25-22 score.
Emory carried that momentum straight into the third set opening with a 5-2 lead but again, the Vikings weren't giving up without a fight and brought the score to 11 apiece. The Eagles then went on a 9-4 run with kills from senior
Leneia Niko and Kennedy to hold a 20-15 advantage. The end of the set was all Emory as the offense carried the program to a 25-18 win in set three.
The third set opened with a slight 8-7 lead for the Eagles until the team was able to take advantage of a number of errors from Berry's offense. Emory took nine straight points to hold a 17-7 lead over the Vikings, their biggest point deficit of the day. Berry was able to score four more points in the set but it wasn't enough as the Eagles finished with an 8-4 run to seal the win with a 25-11 score.
The Eagles will begin the UAA Championship tournament on Saturday, November 15 where they will face the NYU Violets at 1:00 PM as the No. 3 seed in the tournament.
