KERRVILLE, Texas – With the Ladies on match point in the fourth set, junior Kristian Loving's serve found the court to wrap up a thrilling win as Centenary (6-7, 2-1 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference) knocked off Texas Lutheran (4-8, 0-4 SCAC) 22-25, 25-19, 25-17, 27-25 Saturday afternoon, September 15.
The win was the first for the Ladies in seven seasons against the Bulldogs and the first victory against Texas Lutheran in SCAC action.
Centenary dropped the first set and trailed 7-5 in the second, but the Ladies scored five unanswered to take control of the frame. Two Texas Lutheran hitting errors tied the match and a kill from freshman Alyssa Davis put the Ladies in the lead. Two more Bulldog errors put Centenary up three. Later in the lead 23-19, two kills from freshman Lauren Kelley evened the match.
Davis led Centenary will 15 kills, while Kelley contributed 10.
Centenary never trailed and led by as much as nine in the third set, winning the set by eight to take a 2-1 lead.
Neither team led by more than three in a tightly contested fourth set. With Texas Lutheran up 12-9, a 6-1 run gave Centenary the lead. After a Bulldogs service error, a kill from senior Michaela Entry and a Texas Lutheran attack error tied the match. Both teams split the next two points. Centenary took a 15-13 lead thanks to another Brantley kill and a Texas Lutheran error.
Brantley finished the match with eight kills, six of which came in the final set. For the match, she went 8-for-15 with one error for a .467 hitting percentage.
Centenary led 19-17, but Texas Lutheran scored three straight to take the lead on two Ladies errors and a Jaci Chambers ace. After both teams split the next two points, Centenary scored three straight to take the lead. A Kelley kill tied the match and a Brantley killed put the Ladies on the lead. A Texas Lutheran error pushed the lead to 23-21. The Bulldogs tied the set at 23, 24, and 25, but could never take the lead. Tied at 25, a Brantley kill and a Loving aced ended the match.
In the first set, Centenary led 16-13 befor 14 unanswered by the Bulldogs. During the rally, Madison Weisinger had three kills and Jennifer Rodriguez connected on a trio of aces.
For Texas Lutheran, Chambers led the match with 27 digs while Kelly Jurden finished with a double-double (17 assists and 12 digs).
Centenary returns to action next weekend for a quartet of matches at Southwestern. The contests in Georgetown, Texas, features the Ladies first ever match with Johnson & Wales.
