PIKEVILLE, Ky. – The University of Pikeville women's volleyball team took its recent string of luck into a match with Mid-South Conference rival Georgetown College Monday night, where they were dealt a three game sweep by the Tigers.
 
The Bears, who had gone 4-1 in their previous five matches, now fall to 4-12 on the season and 1-4 in the Mid-South, while the Tigers get back to .500 with a 9-9 overall record and a 4-2 conference record.
 
Game One began with promise, as UPike scored the match's opening point. The Bears soon found themselves down however, as Georgetown's strategy began to take effect. With two players jumping after most sets, the Tigers were able to keep the Bears guessing as to who was actually the intended target. This strategy remained effective for most of the night, but served the Tigers best in the opener. The overmatched Bears were unable to get much offensive momentum, and went on to lose the game 25-15.
 
Game Two must have had those in attendance experiencing déjà vu, as the Bears again scored the opening point only to give up another impressive scoring run to the Tigers immediately afterward. Realizing the trend, UPike coach Anna Bevins called a timeout early with her team only trailing 4-1.
 
The Bears were sluggish out of the timeout, but soon responded with some of their best work of the evening, going point-for-point with the Tigers and clawing their way back into contention. With UPike having reduced the margin to 18-14 in favor of Georgetown, Tigers coach Nick Griffin called his only timeout of the game to rally his team.
 
UPike Junior Brittany Hodge was ready though, and dealt back-to-back-to-back spikes before finally earning her team a hard-fought point after the break. Georgetown then made a change of tactics, relying on finesse rather than power. This proved to be UPike's undoing, as they would lose the game 25-18.
 
The third and final game was a trifle for Georgetown, who broke out of a 2-2 tie early by launching a 6-1 run. A UPike timeout did little to disrupt Georgetown, who relied on their frontline's dominant play, specifically that of captain Liz Goodin. The Tigers closed the game out with a 5-0 run to take the game by a score of 25-13, and the match by a score of 3-0.
 
 
Sophomore Paige Thacker was solid against her former teammates, finishing with nine kills and thee service aces. Junior Brooke Parrott had 14 assists for the Bears.
 
Senior Shelbi White matched Thacker's trio of service aces and paced the club on defense with nine digs. Freshman Samantha Ayres followed with six.
 
The Bears will be on the road for their next match when they travel to the University of the Cumberlands Tuesday.
 
 
-UPIKE-