Site: Greensboro, N.C.

Score:
Greensboro 3, Salem 0 (27-25, 25-20, 29-27)

Records: Salem (7-2, 0-1 USA South) / Greensboro (4-5, 1-0 USA South)

Up Next:
Salem at Meredith | September 14 | Raleigh, N.C. | 7 p.m.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Greensboro capitalized on a raucous Hanes Gymnasium and 32 kills over the course of the match to post its sixth straight victory in the all-time series with Salem by scores of 27-25, 25-20, 29-27.

Salem, which struggled to find its offensive rhythm throughout the course of the match, was led by Valeria Rosa Lopez and Aspen Bradley with six and five kills, respectively. Lopez was also active in the back row with 11 digs, equaling the output by Ashlyn Wood, and two off the pace established by Abrielle Eckenroth.

Anna Rymer was the most efficient Salem hitter, posting a .111 attack percentage after driving home four kills in 18 total attempts.

First Set Recap
The opening set between the two league rivals was defined by runs, first with Greensboro grabbing an 8-4 lead on an unforced Spirits' error. However, Salem answered with an 8-2 rally, highlighted by kills from Rymer, Ashlyn Wood and Lopez, moving in front 12-10. Five points later with the set knotted at 13, The Pride came through with a 5-1 run, capped off by a block from Jade Vrobel, to assume a five-point lead. Salem chipped away at the deficit with kills from the trio of Eckenroth, Wood and Lopez, to eventually pull within one, 23-22. With the set knotted at 25-all, Greensboro took advantage of a kill from Kelci Brooks and a Salem error to post the 27-25 victory.

Second Set Recap
After enduring eight ties in the first 20 points of the frame, reaching an eventual 10-all deadlock, before Taylor Cotie slammed home two kills in an eight-point stretch to give Greensboro the 16-12 lead. Rymer and Bradley answered with slams for the Spirits, making for a 16-14 contest, but Greensboro stretched its lead to seven (22-15) with a series of kills from Kelci Brooks and Jade Vrobel. Two kills down the stretch by Lopez was not enough to derail the Greensboro offense, which stretched the margin to 2-0 with the five-point triumph.

Third Set Recap
Looking to clinch the match in three sets, The Pride scored seven of the first eight points of the game to establish a 7-1 advantage. A service error, coupled with an Eckenroth slam and two Pride unforced errors allowed Salem to pull even at eight. The Spirits assumed the lead, 12-10, with back-to-back Greensboro errors, but the game reached a 13-all deadlock five points later. The Pride scored five unanswered points, assuming an 18-13 lead, before a kill from Bradley along with a slam and a block off the hand of Lopez trimmed the margin to 20-18. Lopez and Rymer provided Salem with a 23-22 lead late in the frame, but the Spirits were unable to close the door. The two teams battled through nine points, reaching a climatic 27-27 tie. Brooks gave The Pride a one point lead and an unforced error by Salem resulted in the decisive point as Greensboro picked up its 21st victory in the all-time series.