East Carolina Downs Mercer In Four Sets

Friday, September 6

Jacksonville, Fla.

4:30 p.m.

East Carolina University

4-0

Mercer

3-3

Mercer

East Carolina

Photo by: Rob Goldberg

September 06, 2019 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – After dropping the first set Friday evening, East Carolina rallied to take the final three for a 3-1 (20-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-20) win over Mercer inside the UNF Arena.

The Pirates improved to 4-0 overall while the Bears dropped to 3-3.

Junior right side Bri Wood posted a match-high 14 kills and a .565 hitting percentage while junior outside hitter Sydney Kleinman notched 12 kills and hit at a .304 clip. Redshirt junior libero Brandee Markwith collected a match-best 16 digs.

Annie Karle paced Mercer with 10 kills but committed seven errors to end up with a .100 hitting percentage. Emilee Wissmach lead three Bears in double-figure digs with 12 while Alexia Morey compiled six block assists.

The Pirates rebounded from hitting .161 in the first set to finish the match out-hitting Mercer .227 to .215 and also out-dug the Bears 51-46.

Mercer raced out to a 16-11 lead in the first set, forcing an East Carolina timeout. The Pirates rallied late in the stanza, pulling within 22-20, but the Bears ended the set on a 3-0 run to claim it by five.

ECU fell behind again in the second, but kept working and eventually built a 14-12 lead in the middle stages. The Pirates kept Mercer at an arm's length and created some separation late in the set to record a six-point win and tie the match at one set apiece.

A net violation saw East Carolina claim an 8-6 advantage in the third and the Pirates pulled even further in front when consecutive attacking errors by the Bears made it 15-10. ECU did not relinquish the upper hand and a kill down the middle by Wood ended the frame.

A Kalee Vanderhorst kill afforded the Pirates a 10-9 edge in the fourth before an ace by Shelby Martin continued the run and resulted in a 12-9 lead. East Carolina went ahead by five, 20-15, on a kill by Wood and later closed out the match off of an attacking error.

The Pirates close out their stay at the UNF Invitational with a Saturday morning affair against Wake Forest. First serve for that match is scheduled for 11 a.m.