Eagles Stand Tall Over Bulldogs Friday

By Mike DeVader, Reinhardt Director of Athletic Communications & Media

WALESKA, Ga. – A fast start turned into a highly-contested finish as Reinhardt held off Tennessee Wesleyan, 3-1, at home in Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) action inside the Brown Athletic Center on Friday night.
 
The Eagles (20-2) improved to 13-0 in the AAC and have won 14-consecutive matches following the 25-14,25-10,23-25,25-18 outcome.
 
"The most valuable part of tonight was set three, as it gave us an opportunity to play other players and see how they would handle some adversity; that set will prove valuable down the road," head coach Brian Goodhind said. "To TWU's credit, they kept pushing, even when we had them down and they were able to grab set three. I was willing to sacrifice that set to allow us some much-needed experience in moments like that. I was confident starters would be able to come back in and close it out. Outside of set three, we hit a very high percentage and played pretty smooth. We went 1-0 and our focus is now on Bryan. To God goes all the Glory. #WePlayFor11."
 
The hometown team breezed to a 2-0 lead after combining for 29 total kills in the first two sets. The Bulldogs had a tough time handling the Reinhardt offense in the opening stanza – giving up a .385 hitting percentage – but it got even worse for the visitors after the Eagles blistered the ball to the tune of .619 in game two with just a pair of errors.
 
By far the worst output of the contest came in set three, where the Eagles were slowed to a .162 (including a match-high seven miscues) as they rotated lineups with the final result seemingly in-hand.
 
Tennessee Wesleyan wouldn't go quietly, however, as it came from behind to steal set three after being down by six, 22-16, late in the stanza. The Bulldogs finished the game on a 9-1 run with spurt of four-straight scores to move to within two at 22-20 before finishing the match with five-consecutive points to win, 25-23.
 
The starters re-entered the battle in set four after the learning experience of the previous stanza. Reinhardt was able to regain its stranglehold on the opening portion of the set, but Tennessee Wesleyan again fought back to the best of its ability to pull within two at 16-14 following four scores in-a-row.
 
Reinhardt would then return the favor with four-consecutive points of its own to get the game back in its favor at 20-14. Another small run for the Eagles put the match to rest as the outcome got out of reach for the Bulldogs.
 
Carlee Baxter had another double-double performance with a team-high 23 assists to go along with 10 digs. Mar Vives also recorded 10 defensive receptions and a squad-leading four aces.
 
Erinn Marroquin was next in line with 20 dimes and a pair of aces as well.
 
Additionally on offense, Savanna Davis (12 kills) and Shelby Glawson (10) each had double-digit scoring performances.
 
The team hit .339 overall in the victory.
 
Scoring Leaders Against the Bulldogs
Kills       Savanna Davis (12), Shelby Glawson (10), Tessa Colden (7)
Aces      Mar Vives (4), Erinn Marroquin (2), Kelley Adkins (2)
Blocks   Shelby Glawson (2), Emily Charbonneau (1), Isabelle Breitbarth (1)
Assists  Carlee Baxter (23), Erinn Marroquin (20), Mar Vives (7)
Digs       Carlee Baxter (10), Mar Vives (10), Kelley Adkins (9)
 
A quick turnaround is in store for the squad as the Lions of Bryan (Tenn.) are in town tomorrow for an 11 a.m. matchup.
 
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