Pioneers Pick Up Pair of Wins at Life Running Eagles Classic

Marietta, Ga. – The Spartanburg Methodist College volleyball team won both of its matches on the final day of the Life Running Eagles Classic with a 25-23, 25-11, 25-10 win over St. Andrews (NC) and a 25-22, 19-25, 25-19, 25-22 win over Brenau. The Pioneers have won four of their last five matches to raise their record to 4-5 on the season.

"This was such a great weekend for us. We had great opportunities to try new things and see success in that," said an excited head coach Makayla Holcombe. "I am very proud of the girls for displaying their ability to fight back and come back on top with a win. It's so exciting to see things starting to get together."

In the win over St. Andrews, SMC found itself tied on three occasions and overcame a 23-22 deficit to score the final three points to take the first set. In the next two sets, the Pioneers had 13 and 14 kills, respectively en route to a .407 and .414 hitting percentage.

To go along with seven service aces by the Pioneers – two of which came from Aurora Aho, who had her first double double of the season with 12 kills and 10 digs. Makinnley Smart added 10 kills to an attack that hit .315 for the match. The setters for SMC were instrumental in the success as Tristan Craine and Brook Noe had 20 and 14 assists, respectively.

The second match of the day saw Makinnley Smart record 10 kills and five block assists to lead the Pioneers to its second win of the day. Craine and Noe had 17 and 14 assists, respectively. The service game played a key part in the win as SMC recorded 12 service aces with four by Noe in the win.

SMC led from start to finish in the first set, whereas the second set was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams. The Golden Tigers and the Pioneers were tied at 12 in the set until Brenau picked up four-straight points to take a lead for the remainder of the set.

The Pioneers came back in the third set and scored the first five points on its way to winning the set by a 25-19 margin. The fourth set saw the Pioneers and Golden Tigers knotted at 16 after a Hana Vucinic service ace. The ace prompted a Brenau time out and the momentum remained with SMC after back-to-back kills by Smart and Brantlie Smart. The Pioneers stayed in front for the remainder of the set on its way to the victory.

Next up for Spartanburg Methodist College is the home opener on Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. at Bridges Arena.