FLORENCE, S.C. - Sophomore Samantha Parrish (Angola, Ind.) continued her assault on the Francis Marion Invitational as her 20-kill, 19-dig performance led Newberry to a perfect 2-0 day. The Indiana native and the rest of the Wolves took care of host Francis Marion 3-1 (18-25, 25-14, 25-14, 25-19) at its own invitational on Friday evening.

"Samantha (Parrish) is an outstanding player," Newberry coach David Nicholson said. "We feed off of her energy and solid play. I'd like to note that the rest of our team really stepped up as well."

Much like the first match of the day against Erskine, the Wolves lost the first set again 25-18. However, the Wolves mirrored their first match winning three straight sets.

The Wolves' attacking efficiency was a major reason for the comeback victory. Newberry hit .301 as a team. Freshman Madison Schultz (Decatur, Ind.) hit .529 with 10 kills. Lauren Prachar (Fort Wayne, Ind.) hit .364 with 14 kills and added 10 digs giving her two double-doubles on the day.

Newberry jumped out to a 10-4 lead in set two with the help of three Parrish kills and two from Anne Staudinger (Fort Wayne, Ind.). The Wolves poured it on eventually going up 18-9 and winning the second set 25-14.

The momentum kept flowing for Newberry as they led from start to finish in the third set before finishing them off 25-14. As a team, the Wolves hit .548 in the third set.

"If we keep hitting with this kind of consistency, we can be a tough team," Nicholson said. "We had a great day. I hope we can keep the momentum going in to tomorrow, because (UNC) Pembroke and Belmont Abbey are going to be a challenge."

In the fourth set, Newberry struggled but was able to finish the host Patriots. After a Newberry attack error cut the team's lead to 20-19, the Wolves scored five unanswered points on two kills by Parrish, one by Prachar and two attack errors which sealed the Patriots' fate.

"This is a nice way to start the season," Nicholson said. "We showed a lot of progression from the start of practice until now. However, we're far from perfect and hope to continue improving as the season moves along.

The setting duo of Chelsea Mayor (Sugar Land, Texas) and Blair Browning (Lexington, Ohio) combined for 49 assists. Lindsey Hollingsworth (Charleston, S.C.) led the Wolves with 27 digs.

Newberry will look to continue its perfect tournament tomorrow with an 11 a.m. matchup against Belmont Abbey and a 3 p.m. affair against UNC Pembroke.