AUGUSTA, Ga. — Augusta volleyball took the first two sets from Peach Belt Conference leader Flagler and reached match point in the fifth before falling 3-2 Friday night inside George A. Christenberry Fieldhouse.
The Jaguars opened with 25-23 and 26-24 victories before the Saints answered 25-18 in both the third and fourth sets. Flagler escaped with a 16-14 win in the deciding frame.
The first two sets featured 19 ties and eight lead changes. Augusta broke a 22-22 tie in the opener and secured three of the final four points to win 25-23.
The second was just as close. With the score tied at 24, Sofiia Snitsarevych and Essence Jones delivered back-to-back kills to give Augusta a 26-24 victory and a 2-0 match lead.
Flagler responded by hitting .344 in the third and .290 in the fourth to force a deciding set.
Augusta raced out to a 5-2 lead in the fifth before Flagler put together a run to take an 8-5 advantage. The Jaguars fought back, tying the set at 10 and moving ahead 12-11 on consecutive kills by Layne Witherspoon.
A block gave Augusta match point at 14-13, but Flagler scored the final three points to close out the match.
Witherspoon led the Jaguars with 15 kills and added 11 digs for a double-double. Snitsarevych finished with 14 kills on .353 hitting, four block assists and three service aces.
Nikol Antova also recorded a double-double with 11 kills and 12 digs. Essence Jones added nine kills, while Kinley Nicholls handed out 44 assists and collected 12 digs.
Hunter MacFarland anchored the back row with a match-high 28 digs. Augusta finished with 83 digs and nine service aces.
The Jaguars move to 8-15 overall and 5-5 in Peach Belt play. Augusta and Flagler meet again Saturday, Oct. 24, at 1 p.m. for the Halloween Game inside Christenberry Fieldhouse.
