Box Score by Doug Page
WILSON, N.C. – Junior Allie Cullens and senior Miranda Miller combined to register 21 of Barton College's 46 kills as the Lady Bulldogs extended their winning streak to 10 matches with a sweep of Chowan University Wednesday night in non-conference action, 25-18, 26-24, 25-20.
The Lady Bulldogs up their overall record to 13-6 on the season. Chowan drops to 8-10 overall this season.
Miller finished with a match-high 11 kills for BC, while Cullens added 10 kills to go along with a .769 hitting percentage on the night.
Barton junior Angelica Acevedo tallied a match-high 38 assists to go along with 10 digs for her 14th double-double of the season for the Lady Bulldogs. Freshman Kaytlin Elkins aided in the offensive effort for BC by delivering nine kills and two service aces, while senior Courtney Wiseman and junior Haley Headley each recorded seven kills.
Chowan was led by a team-high 10 kills from Courtney O'Keefe. Karisa Patterson recorded a team-high 26 assists for the Hawks and Bailey Zavala notched a match-high 17 digs.
Both sides battled early in the opening set as the score would be even on five separate occasions throughout the first 16-points scored. With the score tied 8-8, the Hawks recorded back-to-back points to take a 10-8 advantage over BC. The Lady Bulldogs rallied a couple points later as Miller and Cullens delivered consecutive kills to knot the score 11-11.
The Lady Bulldogs took control of the set by using a three-point run to stretch their lead from 15-14 to 18-14. A service ace from freshman Ashley Owen gave BC a 22-16 lead and Barton's largest of the set – 6 points. Elkins closed out the set with a pair of kills to ink the 25-18 victory.
The second set saw Barton take a 5-1 lead after Wiseman took a set from Acevedo for the kill. Chowan used a pair of three-point rallies mid-way through the set to close the gap between the two sides. The second rally pulled the Hawks to within a single point, 14-13, of BC. The Lady Bulldogs stayed aggressive, jumping ahead again by three points after back-to-back aces from junior Maddison Thomson.
Chowan changed the momentum of not only the set, but the atmosphere inside Wilson Gym, using a five-point rally to turn a 19-16 deficit into a 21-19 lead. A timeout from Barton would settle things down as the Lady Bulldogs responded with a pair of points to even the score at 21-all. The Hawks seemed poised to take the set as they held a 24-22 lead, but consecutive errors from Chowan allowed BC to even the score again at 23-23. Two more points to cap-off a four-point run gave the Lady Bulldogs a 26-24 victory to take a 2-0 lead.
The third set would get interesting after a quick two-point run gave the Hawks an 18-15 lead, leading to a timeout from Barton. Out of the timeout, BC trimmed the deficit to 19-18 and looked to gain some momentum back. Trailing 20-18, Miller and the Lady Bulldogs decided to take matters into their own hands, rattling off seven consecutive points to secure the 25-20 win in the set and the 3-0 sweep of the Hawks.
Barton will return to action on Saturday as the Lady Bulldogs host Belmont Abbey College at 2 p.m. in the Wilson Gym.
