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Young Lady Hawks shine in season opener
By Blair Hooper
MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. -- Shorter University opened the 2011 season with a win in Milligan College, Tenn., on Friday over Indiana-Southeast, sweeping the Grenadiers in three sets, 25-17, 25-19, 25-19 in each team's first match of the Milligan Mountain Madness Invitational.
The young Lady Hawks gave spectacular performances in the season opener with freshman Jasmine Crook leading the way with 14 kills on 21 attempts. Freshman Tori Bradley finished with seven kills and first-year setter Megan Pepe added 32 assists in her first collegiate match.
Shorter rallied for a win in game one before closing out Indiana-Southeast with convincing wins in sets two and three.
Indiana-Southeast led 8-4 in the first set before consecutive kills from Loren Olive and Bradley ignited a 7-3 run capped by a pair of Indiana-Southeast errors that tied the game at 11.
Shorter extended its lead to 18-13 with the help of a kill from Crook and the Lady Hawks used four straight points later in the game to close out the Grenadiers 25-17 and take a 1-0 lead in the match.
The teams traded blows in set number two, but Shorter broke an 8-8 deadlock with a 6-2 run spurred on by two kills from Crook for a 14-10 edge. Four Lady Hawk kills and an attacking error from Indiana-Southeast were the final tallies in Shorter's 25-19 victory in game two.
Game three was tightly contested throughout with each side battling to an 18-18 tie late in the set, but Shorter took control with two kills, a service ace and three errors from Indiana-Southeast as the Lady Hawks swept all three sets to garner a victory in their season opener.
Shorter hit .330 for the match with the help of 45 kills against just 13 errors. Transfer Tanequa Whitman led Shorter with 11 digs while senior Jessica Cooper added 12 kills and six total blocks.
Shorter will take on host Milligan College later tonight in game two of the Milligan Mountain Madness Invitational.
