Spurgeon College shook off a narrow second-set loss and controlled the back half of the night, beating Calvary Bible 3-1 (25-21, 24-26, 25-16, 25-19) on Friday at the Mathena Student Center.
Shannon Skinner and Madison Moyer led a balanced Spurgeon attack, and the Knights hit .119 as a team against a Calvary side that finished at .045. The win moved Spurgeon to 2-1 on the season.
How It Happened
The opener was tight throughout — the two teams traded a tie and a lead change before Spurgeon pulled away late for a 25-21 win, out-hitting Calvary .083 to .075 in the set. The second was the night's most contested: four ties and two lead changes, with Calvary surviving 26-24 to square the match at a set apiece.
Spurgeon's answer was decisive. The Knights hit .250 in the third set, their best of the match, and turned it into a 25-16 result. They stayed hot in the fourth at .229, closing out 25-19. Over sets three and four combined, Spurgeon put down 29 kills against just 10 errors.
Inside the Numbers
Skinner finished with a match-high 22 digs to go with 16 kills, adding two aces and a block assist for 18.5 points. Moyer matched her point total with 15 kills on 43 swings at .279, plus two solo blocks and a block assist. Naomi Gibler was the most efficient attacker on the floor, hitting .400 with 12 kills on 25 attempts and two block assists.
Charis Goodell ran the offense with 37 assists and chipped in 12 digs and two block assists. Adley Geist added 15 digs and four assists in the back row, and Jayci McKinney contributed six kills and 14 digs. Anna Lambert served two of Spurgeon's seven aces.
The Knights took a 7-4 edge in aces and finished with 51 kills to Calvary's 38. Digs were nearly even at 78-79. Calvary's front line was the visitors' strength on the night, with 20 block assists compared to Spurgeon's six, though the Knights added two solo stops.
Kenleigh Elder paced Calvary with 13 kills, 17 digs and three block assists. Mona Acheson led all players with 26 digs. Eden Rodriguez and Anna Watson split setting duties with 19 and 11 assists, and Reagan Norris was the visitors' most active blocker with six block assists. The match featured 11 tie scores and six lead changes.
