MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — Nikol Antova finished with 23 kills and 21 digs as Augusta pushed Georgia College to five sets Saturday afternoon at the Centennial Center. The Bobcats held on for the 3-2 win, taking the match 25-22, 27-29, 25-19, 18-25, 15-12.
After dropping the opening set, Augusta answered in a back-and-forth second frame that featured 11 ties and four lead changes. The Jaguars put down 19 kills and hit .347 to earn the 29-27 win and even the match.
Georgia College regained the advantage with a 25-19 victory in the third, but Augusta responded again. The Jaguars limited the Bobcats to a .116 hitting percentage in the fourth and pulled away for a 25-18 win to force a deciding set.
Augusta hit .286 in the fifth, committing just one attacking error, but Georgia College countered with 11 kills and a .407 percentage to close out the match, 15-12.
Antova hit .354 and added two aces and two block assists to her 23-kill, 21-dig performance. Emma Haren contributed 21 kills on .302 hitting, while Layne Witherspoon finished with 12 kills and a .250 percentage.
Kinley Nicholls directed the Augusta offense with 46 assists and completed a double-double with 12 digs. Grayson Jones recorded five of the Jaguars' 14 service aces, while Sofiia Snitsarevych added seven kills, three aces and five block assists. Moni Anjous collected 14 digs.
Augusta finished with a 65-64 edge in kills and doubled Georgia College's ace total, 14-7. The Bobcats hit .255 for the match and held an 11.5-6 advantage in blocks.
The Jaguars move to 5-13 overall and 3-4 in Peach Belt Conference play.
Augusta continues its road stretch Tuesday, Oct. 13, with a 6 p.m. match against Emmanuel University in Franklin Springs, Georgia.
