PEMBROKE — Visiting Lander hit .273 from the net and registered six blocks on the way to a 3-0 (27-25, 25-18, 25-14) victory over the UNC Pembroke volleyball team on Tuesday afternoon in a non-conference match at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
The setback for the Braves (9-12) marked the second-straight loss this season and the third straight loss to Lander. The Bearcats (13-3) improve to 31-18 all-time against UNCP and have now won their last six matches this season.
UNC Pembroke took a slight 5-4 first-set lead following a kill from Savannah Whaley early in the first set. Lander hit .250 from the net and took an 18-15 advantage after a UNCP attack error. The Braves put together a 5-1 run to lead 22-20 with a kill from Abby Peduzzi, but the Bearcats closed out the set on a 7-3 run to win 27-25.
Lander hit .286 from the net in the second set and took an 11-8 lead with a kill from Madde Blake, but an Peduzzi kill tied the score at 13. The Bearcats limited the Braves to a .136 hitting percentage and closed out the set on a 10-3 scoring surge leading to a 25-18 set win.
The Bearcats used an 8-0 run to push their lead out to 11-6 in the third set. The Braves chipped away at their deficit, 15-10, with a block from Mckenna Hayes and Precious Daley, but Lander padded its lead with a 5-0 run to push the lead out to 20-10. UNCP continued to work its deficit back and trailed 22-14 with a kill from Whaley, but Lander scored the final three points of the set to win 25-14 and close out the match.
Daley had 12 kills for UNCP, Whaley had 10 kills, Peduzzi had eight kills and 15 digs, Tyler Patterson had 33 assists, Karagyn Durco had 16 digs and two aces, Brette Doile had 14 digs and four assists and Mckenna Hayes had two blocks.
The Braves will be back in action on Thursday when they travel to face Mount Olive in a divisional match. First serve is set for 6 p.m. inside Kornegay Arena.