Women’s Volleyball Drops Weekend Doubleheader against Lipscomb

Liberty’s women’s volleyball team dropped its second consecutive match to Lipscomb in four sets on Sunday to start the season at 0-3, leaving the Lady Flames winless in Liberty Arena since its opening. 

In the first set, momentum shifted consistently, with no team scoring a run longer than four points. Outside hitter Trinity Watts spearheaded the Lady Flames attack, tallying six of their 12 kills with just one error on nine attempts. The Bisons recorded 10 kills in the first set, with outside hitter Megan Kuper leading the way with four.

Despite registering more kills, the Lady Flames committed 13 unforced errors, with six coming on the serve (in contrast, the Bisons had no serving errors). Liberty outside hitter Rajini Fitzmaurice committed one of those errors on a kill attempt with the score at 18-16 Liberty. The hit was originally called in, but ultimately overturned after a successful challenge by Lipscomb Head Coach Brandon Rosenthal. With momentum back on their side, the Bisons clawed out a 25-23 opening set win.

Watts felt comfortable after the first set, something her stat line reflected.

“I felt great and I felt confident, and it feels great to have my teammates set me and stay confident in me,” Watts said.

The Lady Flames rallied in the second set and minimized their errors, but the Flames once again needed to stave off another furious Lipscomb rally. After building an 11-4 advantage to start, they found themselves clinging to a 22-21 lead toward the end. Kuper again carried the Bisons offense with six kills on 12 attempts with one error.

With the set in the balance, Lady Flames middle blocker Kainah Williams blocked a kill attempt and recorded a kill of her own on back-to-back volleys, increasing Liberty’s advantage to 24-21 and energizing her team and the crowd. Watts capped off the wild set by emphatically stuffing Bisons outside hitter Lanie Wagner – then staring her down – drawing the teams even and winning Liberty’s first set of the season.

As the game wore on, Williams and Watts powered the Lady Flames side forward. Watts’ stare-down caught the attention of Head Coach Trevor Johnson and earned his appreciation.

“Sometimes it kind of gets us in trouble, but it’s part of her personality and swag and I love that on the court,” Johnson said.

Williams, who redshirted last season while recovering from an injury, relishes her chance to be back on the court.

“It feels amazing to be back out there,” Williams said. “My teammates are my spark, which allows me to play with freedom.”

Lipscomb dominated the third set, however, jumping out to a 9-4 lead at the onset. The Lady Flames kept the match close for the middle part of the set, but the Bisons’ execution on offense gave the Lady Flames defense too many headaches as the set progressed. Lipscomb scored several kills off tips, which Liberty struggled to cover effectively. Bisons middle blocker Meg Mersham tallied three kills to lead her side to a 25-17 win in the frame.

“We pride ourselves on defense, sometimes it’s just not seeing things or watching this properly,” Johnson said. “Sometimes when you watch the ball a lot on defense and not the hitter’s approach which helps you read plays. We spent too much time watching the ball.”

The fourth set followed a similar pattern as the third set, with Kuper fittingly recording the match-winning kill and closing the set at 25-14.

Watts noted that the Lady Flames lost their rhythm when rallies got chaotic, which contributed to the momentum shift after they kept the first two sets competitive.

“As a group, we need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable,” Watts said. “Lipscomb got comfortable when they were chaotic, whereas we were not.”

Despite starting the season out 0-3, Johnson remains confident that his squad will develop in time to make some noise come playoff time.

“This is a war of attrition,” Johnson said. “Our girls have to understand that championships aren’t won in February but in March and April. They show up every single day ready to work hard and grind.”

Liberty lost the first game of the weekend’s doubleheader in a 3-0 sweep by the Bisons Saturday. The Lady Flames will return to action Feb. 13 for a doubleheader against North Alabama. 

John Simmons is the Web Manager. Follow him on Twitter at @JohnSimmonsJr7.