STERLING, Kan. — The Sterling College Lady Warriors edged the Friends University Falcons in a five-set thriller on Saturday (Oct. 11), with final scores of 25-14, 25-14, 23-25, 18-25 and 15-10.
Friends dropped the first two sets by identical scores of 25-14. Sterling's blocking efforts were instrumental, as they recorded multiple blocks that led to attack errors from Friends, notably during a 7-0 run that widened the gap from 10-9 to 17-9 in the first set.
The Falcons were then hindered by six attack errors in the second set in falling behind 2-0.
Friends secured a hard-fought third set victory against Sterling, closing out 25-23. The Falcons converted four consecutive points off Sterling errors to shift from a 19-21 deficit to a 23-21 lead.
Maddy Hildebrand played a pivotal role with five kills, while
Gabbie Taylor contributed two service aces, helping Friends stay in the match.
The Falcons opened the fourth set with a decisive 6-0 run, capitalizing on three attack errors by Sterling's Abi Howard and a service ace by
Sofia Mekelburg to establish early control. Mekelburg and
Natalie Castillo combined for key kills, contributing to Friends' dominance as they extended the lead to 12-2. Despite a brief rally by Sterling, with kills from Aliya McClanahan and Keala Wilson, Friends maintained their advantage, closing out the set 25-18 on Castillo's final kill.
Friends fell in the decisive fifth set against Sterling, 15-10, despite a competitive mid-set rally. Friends closed the gap from 6-2 to 9-8, capitalizing on Sterling's attack errors and getting kills from Taylor and Castillo. However, Sterling secured the set with a 6-2 closing run, aided by by Wilson's key assists and closing kill.
Hildebrand led the offensive charge for Friends with 14 kills on 36 attempts, contributing 14.5 points overall. Taylor added 11 kills and played a strong role at the net with two block assists. Castillo was effective with eight kills on 22 attempts and posted four total blocks.
Jacey Moulton anchored the defense, recording 16 digs from the libero position.
Randi Reid led the Falcons with 23 assists and
Emma Sargeant had 17 assists, with each setter also contributing 10 digs.
Wilson led Sterling with 15 digs and contributed 25 assists with six total blocks over the five sets. McClanahan stood out with a team-high 21 points, achieving a .483 hitting percentage with 16 kills and eight total blocks. Chloe Schmidt also recorded nine total blocks and Grace Battershell tallied 27 assists.
The Falcons will next host Avila University Wednesday night (Oct. 15) at 7 pm inside the Garvey Center.
