NEWBERRY, S.C. - The Newberry College volleyball team moved back into a tie for second place in the South Atlantic Conference Friday night by defeating the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears, 3-0 (25-7, 25-16, 25-17).

Kara Harris (Grandview, Texas) had one of her best matches of the season against the Bears with a match high 11 kills and an attack percentage of .429. Lorena Maia (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) also played efficiently with eight kills and no errors on 18 attacks. Brianna Blakely (Houston, Texas) led the team in assists with 28 and Nadia Andrade (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) led the team in digs with 14.

Lindsey Cantu (Orlando, Fla.) led the way for the Bears with six kills and eight digs. Hannah Stewart (Statesville, N.C.) also had a solid night with 17 assists and eight digs. Kassi Henry (Denver, N.C.) led her team in kills with seven.

Coming off a tough loss to Wingate, the scarlet and gray came out swinging by starting the opening set on a 13-3 run. Newberry would dominate for the remainder of the opening set with three runs of four straight points or more. They would win the set by their largest margin of the season, 25-7. Harris had her best set in the first with five kills and no errors on six attacks.

The Bears came out with a bit more passion in the second set and made it tougher for the scarlet and gray to create an early advantage. But L-R could not crack a strong Newberry defense that would earn 51 digs in the match. NC gradually broke down the Bears and created a 19-16 lead. Newberry then scored the final six points to clinch the set, 25-16. Newberry spread the ball around in the second set which threw off the opposition. The team only earned a total of 11 kills but had a superb attack percentage of .346.

The scarlet and gray had their opponent against the ropes and were ready to end the match. They opened up the set with a 7-2 run aided by three straight service aces from Priscila Sales (Belo Horizonte, Brazil). Lenoir-Rhyne began to play with a sense of desperation but once again could not crack the Newberry defense. The scarlet and gray showed they know how to close a match by not letting the Bears come within four points for the remainder of the set.

Newberry won the match winning set, 25-17. Sales was phenomenal in the final set, leading her team in aces (3) and digs (5). She finished the night with eight kills, four aces, and nine digs.

The Newberry College volleyball team now stands at 12-6 overall and 5-2 in the SAC. They will return to action on Saturday, October 11, in a home match against Catawba at 2 p.m.