Panthers sweep Brenau for fourth straight win
Sept. 28, 2007

LaGrange College won its fourth straight match with a 3-0 sweep of Brenau University at the CEG Gym on Friday night. The Panthers upped their record to 7-6, while the Tigers fell to 1-13. It was the first home match for the Panthers after 11 straight on the road.

The Panthers took the match by scores of 30-28, 30-28 and 30-26. Casey Craig had eight kills to pace the Panthers. Kayla Black had 10 assists, while Sarah Newland had 14 digs.

The Panthers had to come from behind to take the first game. After leading 14-11, the Panthers let the lead slip away. Brenau took a 20-19 lead and appeared to be taking control of the game. The Tigers led 27-23 when the Panthers rallied. The Panthers reeled off six straight points to retake the lead. Brenau could not return Connie Russell's serve that tied the game at 27. Russell followed with a service ace and a block by Britny Greenspan put the Panthers up 29-27. Brenau stopped the Panthers run to cut it to 29-28, but a service error by the Tigers ended the game.

The Panthers had to survive a rally by Brenau to take the second game. The Panthers jumped out to a 7-0 lead to start the game. The Tigers came back to get within two, 8-6. The Panthers responded with a 9-0 run to open up a 15-6 lead. Grace Burgess had two service aces during the run. The Panthers led 17-7 when Brenau started its comeback. The Tigers cut the deficit to two, 23-21, forcing a time out by the Panthers. After the time out, the Tigers got within one point on four occasions. Each time, the Panthers were able to answer and held on for the 30-28 win.

Brenau jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the third and final game. After the Panthers tied the game with three straight points, the two teams started swapping points. Rachel Ecke's kill put the Tigers up 17-16. They held a 24-22 lead after Karen Green blocked Russell's kill attempt. The Panthers came back with four straight points to take the lead for good. Russell tied the game at 24 with a block and put the Panthers up 26-24 with a kill. Megan Waycaster served up back-to-back service aces to put the Panthers up 29-25. The Tigers got a point back before a service error closed out the game and the match.

The Panthers host Huntingdon in a GSAC match on Wednesday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m.