MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Millsaps College volleyball team faced two tough challenges Saturday, falling to AVCA/Taraflex Division III Women's Volleyball Poll-ranked opponents No. 2 Centre College and No. 8 Berry College inside Mallory Gymnasium.
Match 1: Berry College 3, Millsaps College 0
(22-25, 17-25, 15-25)
Freshman Khloe Duncan led Millsaps with eight kills and added eight digs and a block assist. Ware finished with a team-high 15 assists, seven digs, one service ace, and a block assist. Senior Sandy Bourgeois recorded a team-leading 13 digs and added a service ace. Sophomore Rachel Zamjahn added nine assists and seven digs and converted her lone attack for a kill.
Millsaps' strongest push came late in the first set, when it answered a 24-17 Berry edge with five straight points to get within 24-22. Bourgeois served four consecutive points during that stretch, including an ace, before a block by junior Zoë LaCaze and sophomore Anna Ware brought Millsaps within two. Berry took the next point to close the set, 25-22.
The Majors gained early momentum in the second set, breaking a 2-2 tie to take a 5-2 lead behind a block from Duncan and sophomore Lily Luneau, a kill by classmate Madelynn Sasser, and another kill from Luneau. Berry responded with a 7-5 advantage, but Millsaps remained within striking distance throughout the middle of the set. Kills from Zamjahn, LaCaze, Sasser, and senior Amelia Bohl kept the score close, with the teams eventually tied at 14-14.
However, Berry pulled away late, scoring six consecutive points to extend an 18-16 lead to 24-16 before securing a 25-17 set victory.
In the final set, Millsaps kept the score even at 3-3 following a service ace from Ware, but Berry responded with five consecutive points to take an 8-3 lead. The Majors continued to battle, adding a service ace from sophomore Atlee Gonzales and kills from Duncan, Luneau, LaCaze, and sophomore Kinney Boyle. Despite the Majors' efforts, Berry maintained its advantage throughout the set, closing out a 25-15 victory in the third.
Match 2: Centre College 3, Millsaps College 0
(21-25, 20-25, 16-25)
Duncan led Millsaps with 11 kills and added three block assists. Bourgeois recorded 20 digs, four assists, and one service ace. Ware finished with a team-high 16 assists and added seven digs. LaCaze tallied four kills, four block assists, and two service aces.
Millsaps recorded seven total blocks to Centre's two and committed three service errors to Centre's eight, while the Colonels held advantages in digs (60-52) and service aces (7-4).
An early 5-1 deficit turned into a 9-5 Millsaps lead after the Majors scored eight consecutive points, including three kills from Duncan and another from Luneau during Ware's service stretch. Centre rallied to even the score late, and after the teams were tied at 21-21, the visitors scored the final four points to claim the first set, 25-21.
Millsaps found itself playing from behind in the second set after Centre extended an 11-9 lead to 15-9 midway through the frame. The Majors responded with back-to-back blocks from Bohl and LaCaze, followed by a service ace from LaCaze. Duncan added a kill to bring Millsaps within four points at 24-20. The Colonels secured the set on the next point, 25-20.
The third set remained competitive until the score was tied at 15-15, when Centre took control by winning 10 of the final 11 points. Duncan recorded five kills for the Majors in the set, while Boyle added a kill to bring Millsaps within 18-16 before Centre closed out the frame with seven consecutive points. Centre claimed the third set, 25-16.
The Majors will face Oglethorpe University on Sunday beginning at 11 a.m. in Memphis, Tenn., Live video will be available at FloCollege, while live stats will be available at gomajors.com.
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the Millsaps volleyball program follow the Majors on X and Instagram, like Millsaps Majors Athletics on Facebook and visit gomajors.com.
Founded in Jackson, Mississippi in 1890, Millsaps College is a national liberal arts college dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry and free expression, the exploration of faith to inform vocation and the innovative shaping of the social, economic and cultural progress of our region. Consistently ranked as one of the best values in higher education, Millsaps has been praised by Colleges That Change Lives, The Princeton Review, Forbes Magazine, U.S. News & World Report, The John Templeton Foundation, and The Fiske Guide to Colleges.
