NEWBERRY - Despite an effort from Toni-Anne Whitlow that saw the senior go over 1,000 career kills, the Newberry Wolves volleyball team lost to Catawba in five sets Saturday afternoon to drop to 6-19 (4-16 SAC) on the season.

The Wolves got off to a good start in the first set as they took an early 7-1 lead. Back to back service aces from setter Olivia Kozemko buoyed Newberry during the opening run. With the Wolves leading 14-6, the Lady Catawba Indians went on a quick 4-0 run to cut the lead down to four at 14-10. However, Newberry would respond with a 4-0 run of their own that was punctuated by a Whitlow kill. Catawba would not get closer than five points the rest of the set and the Wolves cruised to a 25-18 opening set victory.

The roles were reversed early in the second set as Catawba jumped out to a 6-2 lead. The Wolves responded with a 4-0 run to tie the match, but the Lady Catawba Indians jumped back out to a 10-7 lead and continued to keep the pressure on. Their lead stretched all the way out to 20-12 before Newberry closed to within 22-17 on a service ace by Avery Webb. Catawba would come back to win the final three points of the set and tie the match at one.

The third set saw a back and forth affair between the teams as Newberry jumped out to a 6-3 lead. The Lady Catawba Indians kept it close, however, as they tied the set at nine a short while later. Neither team would lead by more than four points for the rest of the set. With the match tied at 20, the Wolves looked poised to seize the momentum and indeed won the next point on a block by Sidra Triplett and Kylee Kanealey. Catawba had other ideas as they won five of the next seven points to take the set 25-23 and take the crucial 2-1 lead.

Newberry knew the match was on the line in the fourth set, but Catawba seemed ready to pounce and end the match as they got out to the early lead and extended it out to 15-9 later in the set. The Wolves battled back quickly, winning 10 of 14 points to tie the set at 19 before going on another big run to close out the set. The Wolves won five of seven points to take the fourth set as Whitlow hammered down the final kill.

The fifth set saw the Wolves get off to a great start, as they won five of the first six points and looked like they might cruise to the finish line. However, leading 8-4, Catawba made a huge push and close to within one point before going on to take the lead at 10-9. The Lady Catawba Indians continued to put the pressure on and had match point at 14-10, but Newberry was not done yet. The Wolves staved off four consecutive match points to tie the set at 14. Unfortunately, the effort was not quite enough as a service error and a kill by the Lady Catawba Indians gave them the five set victory.

Whitlow came into the match with 990 career kills and led Newberry with 18, while Kanealey joined her in double figures with 14. Kanealey's effort marked a career high. Avery Webb and Olivia Kozemko also had standout performances on the evening as they each tallied 19 assists and nine digs and also combined for five service aces. Becca Hallingstad tied Kozemko for the team lead in service aces with three, while Sydney Diaz led the Wolves' defensive charge with 15 digs, adding in a season high eight assists.

Newberry will close out their season this coming weekend as they travel to UVa-Wise and Tusculum.