The Talladega College men's volleyball team earned a 3-1 victory over Warner University in Lake Wales, Fla. Friday. The sets ended
26-24, 22-25, 25-23, 25-19, equaling a four-frame Tornadoes' triumph. Talladega improved its record to 5-6 on the season.
The Tornadoes were led by
Mallik Foreman offensively. The sophomore recorded a career high 18 kills and a .308 hitting percentage, Foreman's best mark in a match with at least 10 total attacks.
Nkoya Williams-Bailey added 14 kills for Talladega. Richard Hollomon contributed a team high 23 assists.
Elijah Foster posted 18 assists of his own.
Defensively, Foster swatted two solo blocks.
Aleksander Sobik and
Denzel Pepper each had one. Pepper also picked up five block assists.
Andrea Tognazzo led the Tornadoes with 11 kills. Williams-Bailey followed with eight.
The teams split the first six points of the opening set, but Warner followed with an 11-3 run. The Tornadoes called a timeout trailing 14-6 and turned the frame around immediately after. Talladega put together a 7-1 run to pull within two points (15-13) and finally tied it at 18 courtesy of a Foreman kill, his third of the match.
Foreman knotted the count at 20 with his fourth kill. The two sides traded points until they found themselves in a 24-24 stalemate. The Tornadoes followed with two straight points-a service ace by Williams-Bailey and a kill by
Love-let Blake-to claim to first frame. Talladega finished the set with a .440 hitting percentage, the best mark either team posted throughout the match.
Warner responded with a 25-22 victory in the second set, but the Tornadoes answered back in the third. The first 20 points were split, but Warner sailed ahead with a 7-3 run to take a 17-13 advantage. Talladega slowly clawed back, managing to tie the score at 21 thanks to a Hollomon ace. A Blake kill evened it again at 22-22 and the Tornadoes won three of the final four points, claiming the frame 25-23 and putting them just one set away from a match victory.
That set proved to be the fourth. While each of the first three frames ended with a margin of three points or less, the Tornadoes had an easier time in the clincher. The Royals had early success, leading 12-10 after the first 22 points. However, the Tornadoes made another run, battling to 13-13 and 14-14 ties and never looking back after that. Talladega won 11 of the final 16 points tallied and claimed a 25-19 set win, sealing a 3-1 match victory.
Talladega finishes off its three-game Florida trip Saturday against St. Thomas University. The Tornadoes and Bobcats face off at 2 p.m. in Miami Gardens.
