STAUNTON, VA. — The Southern Virginia Women's Volleyball team traveled to Mary Baldwin University to open their conference schedule Wednesday night, taking down the Fighting Squirrels in four sets 3-1.

Key Stats

• Courtney Pinkston led the team with 16 kills, while Sydney Hopkin followed with 11, and Brenna Clyde added 10
• Katelyn Chamberlain dominated the serves on the night, recording five aces, while Emma Steiger locked down the defense with 16 digs

 
Set One:

• Mary Baldwin came out hot, jumping to an early 4-0 lead off two kills from Rachel Christian
• Later in the set, the Fighting Squirrels used a five-point run to double up the Knights 12-6
• Courtney Pinkston sparked a 6-2 scoring run to bring the team within two points 14-12
• Southern Virginia took their first lead of the game after three errors from Mary Baldwin allowed the Knights to go on a 5-1 run to go ahead 20-18 late in the set
• The Fighting Squirrels closed out the first set going on a final 6-1 scoring run to take the 1-0 lead in the match following the 26-24 set victory

Set Two:

• Both teams traded points at the start of the second set with Mary Baldwin clinging to the 8-6 lead
• Ashley Torbeson and Courtney Pinkston denied the attack from the Squirrels, sparking the 6-1 run to jump ahead 12-9
• Mary Baldwin punched back late in the set, tying the game up at 21, but Brenna Clyde put the team back up with a kill
• Katelyn Chamberlain closed out the set with a final ace to even up the match 1-1 with the 25-22 set win

Set Three:

• Mary Baldwin continued pouring on the pressure to the Knights, going up 5-2 in the third
• In her first start of the year, Sage Matheny gave Southern Virginia their first lead of the set off a clutch ace
• Each team again exchanged points and the lead late into the set, but Brenna Clyde led a quick 3-0 scoring run to go ahead 22-18
• A costly attacking error from Mary Baldwin and a final kill from Sage Matheny wrapped up the third set 25-20, putting the Knights up 2-1 in the match

Set Four:

• Southern Virginia raced to a 11-4 lead led by two kills from Sydney Hopkin and two aces from Katelyn Chamberlain
• The Knights maintained their lead throughout the set, building a seven-point advantage 22-14 late in the final set
• Courtney Pinkston ended the match with a kill, taking the set 25-18, and taking the 3-1 match victory

Up Next:
Southern Virginia travels to Brevard, North Carolina, to continue their conference matchups with a doubleheader weekend on Saturday, September 24. The Knights take on Meredith first at noon, followed by William Peace at 2 pm. Visit knightathletics.com for live stats and streaming options
 
Follow the women's volleyball team @knightwvolleyball on Instagram and @knightwvolley on Twitter for more updates and details on the team.