Box Score Bonee Triple-Double in 3-2 Loss
BUENA VISTA, Va. – Meredith came back from two sets down to eliminate Maryville from the USA South tournament semifinals in 3-2 decision.
The Scots won the first two sets 25-22 and 27-25 but then dropped three in a row by the scores of 25-18, 25-23 and 15-10.
Maryville had a big comeback win at Covenant last month, rallying from a 2-0 deficit, only to see the tables turned in this one. The Scots had defeated Meredith 3-2 back in September in the USA South Crossover Tournament played at Brevard, so another close match was expected.
"We played hard and left it on the floor," Maryville head coach Kandis Schram said. "I am so proud of this team. They are an amazing group of competitors who represent Maryville College with everything they have."
After an early deficit in Set 1, Maryville roared to leads of 12-3 and 16-4 thanks to kills from Amii Ingalls, Hannah Potts and Meredith Bonee. But then Meredith showed it would not go quietly by putting together its own 17-6 run and drawing within 22-21. Three Avenging Angel errors in the last four points handed the set to Maryville 25-22.
Meredith broke on top 5-1 in Set 2, but Maryville scored nine of the next 10 points and led 10-7 on an Ingalls service ace. The set was tied at 10, 11, 12 and 14 before Meredith pulled in front 18-14. But the Scots had the final push, knotting the score at 22-22 and then getting back-to-back kills from Isabella Samson and Ingalls to win it 27-25.
Set 3 was closely contested until late, when Meredith put together a 6-0 run that took the Angels to the brink at 24-15. Maryville drew a few points closer but then Meredith finished it with a 25-18 win.
Momentum Carries Over
The Angels carried that momentum into Set 4 by scoring the first six points and then taking a 9-1 advantage. But Maryville had ideas of closing this match out in four set by rallying to take a 16-15 lead. The teams traded points until Maryville led 23-22, and that's when Meredith won the final three points to steal the set 25-23.
Set 5 was even for the first half, with Maryville leading 7-6. But Scot points were hard to come by after that as Meredith by a comfortable 15-10 margin to advance to Saturday's championship match.
Bonee for the second match in a row posted a season high in kills with 10, and this time she finished with her first triple-double since 2019 by adding 40 assists and 19 digs. Samson with 18 kills matched her season high and Ingalls had a double-double with 13 kills and 15 digs.
Natalie Watts finished with 14 digs and Emily Rogers added 11, while Reese Bailey posted eight block assists and Potts had five.
Maryville's 11-match winning streak comes to an end and the Scots finish their season 21-9. Meredith improves to 23-7 and plays in Saturday's final against host Southern Virginia, which defeated Covenant 3-1.
