Despite a loss to Fayetteville State, the Lady Falcons (3-5 Southern Division, 6-8 CIAA, 8-14 overall) are gelling as the regular season winds down. They have won five of their last eight matches.
A victory against Livingstone College in Salisbury, N.C., on November 3 will likely send the Lady Falcons to the CIAA Tournament. Eight teams – the top four in the Northern and Southern Divisions – will advance to the tournament. The Lady Falcons were tied with Livingstone for fourth place in the Southern Division entering the home match against Fayetteville State.
“We are peaking at the right time,” SAU Head Coach Nikki Bynum Bumpass said. “We played [Fayetteville State] tough. We have to be ready against Livingstone.”
The Lady Falcons visit CIAA member Virginia Union in Richmond, Va., on Thursday, October 30, and non-conference foe Pfeiffer University in Misenheimer, N.C., on Sunday before they take on Livingstone. The Virginia Union match starts at 6 p.m. and the Pfeiffer match begins at 2 p.m.
The Lady Falcons enter their next three matches with momentum. They stunned then division co-leader Winston-Salem State University on October 20 and took Fayetteville State to five sets on Monday.
Olivia Porter recorded six kills and four digs in the first set as the Lady Falcons started off the match with a two-point win. The score was tied 23-23 but a Porter kill off a Thomas assist and a FSU attack error gave the Lady Falcons the victory.
The Lady Broncos came back to win sets two and three by identical scores. Led by eight kills and five digs from Porter, the Lady Falcons roared back for an eight-point win in the fourth set to tie the match.
A slow start by the Lady Falcons aided the Lady Broncos in the final set. The Lady Falcons fell behind 10-4 and never recovered.
Samira Luis registered 17 kills, 20 digs and two blocks for the division leading Lady Broncos (7-1 Southern Division, 12-2 CIAA, 14-6 overall). Shavon Shaw added 16 kills and 11 digs while Taylor Norris finished with 14 kills. Rheid Tridle had 45 assists and Decausha McLean had 29 digs. Ashley Britton had eight blocks.
The Lady Falcons have more than held their own against the top two teams in the Northern and Southern Divisions this season. In addition to defeating Winston-Salem State, the Lady Falcons also beat Virginia State, the Northern Division second-place team. Both of their losses to Fayetteville State this season went five sets.
The match was designated as Dig Pink Night. Both teams wore pink warm-up T-shirts to promote breast cancer awareness.
Sports and Information
Jordan Baber
