GREENSBORO, N.C. – Pfeiffer battled host Greensboro closely in the opening set Wednesday night, but fell to the Pride in straight sets, 25-23, 25-15, 25-20, in a USA South match at Hanes Gymnasium.
Despite the loss, Pfeiffer showed resilience throughout the match and nearly stole the opening set after rallying from a late deficit. The Pride finished with 31 kills, five service aces and five total blocks while competing against a Greensboro squad that improved to 14-2 overall and 5-1 in conference play. Pfeiffer moved to 2-11 overall and 1-5 in USA South action.
Jada Thomas led the Pride offense with seven kills and added three solo blocks for a team-high 10 points.
Anasty Faavesi also recorded seven kills, while
Leigan Lusk was highly efficient with four kills on 11 attempts without an error for a .364 hitting percentage and two solo blocks.
Setter
Karmen Rion directed the attack with 18 assists and two service aces, while
Kelsey Hussey contributed seven assists and a pair of aces. Defensively,
Gabi Gama paced the Pride with 14 digs, and libero
Molly Wright added 12 digs.
The opening set featured eight ties and four lead changes as Pfeiffer stayed within striking distance throughout. Trailing 22-16, the Pride mounted a six-point surge behind strong play from Thomas and Faavesi to tie the score at 22-22. Greensboro answered with three of the final four points to escape with the 25-23 victory.
Greensboro gained control in the second set, using a mid-set run to build a double-digit advantage before securing a 25-15 decision. Pfeiffer responded with a strong start in the third set, taking an early 11-11 tie and later a 15-13 advantage behind kills from Thomas, Lusk and Faavesi. The Pride remained within two points at 18-16, but Greensboro closed the match on a 9-4 run to complete the sweep.
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For Greensboro, Payton Shiflet recorded a match-high 11 kills, while Abigail Leo added five kills and six block assists. Emory Johnson finished with 17 assists and Morgan Mayfield collected a match-high 16 digs.
