SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Led by senior Taylor Baird's match-high 20 kills, the Wofford volleyball team overcame a Western Carolina rally to end a five-match SoCon losing streak in five sets (25-20, 25-18, 19-25, 20-25, 15-12) on Homecoming Saturday at Benjamin Johnson Arena.
 
Down 8-6 in the fifth, Wofford scored three straight points to take the lead on a kill by freshman Alex Holland. The Terriers never trailed again and earned three match points when Baird's third kill of the set put Wofford ahead 14-11.
 
The final point could not have been more dramatic. An 11-hit rally that saw diving saves from attacks on both sides came to an end when the ball hit the floor off a mishandled set by Western's Christina Nazario.
 
The win ended Western Carolina's (13-12, 6-5 SoCon) six-game winning streak, and also ended a drought of over six years since Wofford (11-15, 3-6 SoCon) last won in five sets at home. Not since defeating The Citadel on Sept. 27, 2008 had Wofford done it. In fact, the last seven times Wofford went to five sets at home, it ended in a loss, including last Wednesday against Mercer and earlier this year versus USC Upstate.
 
Wofford outpaced Western 67-52 in kills, edging the Catamounts .239 to .228 on the attack. Those 67 kills came with the help of a match-high 55 assists from freshman setter Molly Mayo, who leads the Southern Conference in assists per set.
 
Despite getting blocked a season-high 16 times for the second straight match, the Terrier attack was able to overcome. In addition to the 15-kill advantage, Wofford had nine aces to Western's five.
 
Junior Liz Buterbaugh, sophomore Ellie Tallman and freshman Bella Santoro joined Baird with double-figure kills. The senior's 20 came at .298, while Buterbaugh, Tallman and Santoro all had 10. Buterbaugh's was the most impressive, as she hit .692 with just a single error on 13 attempts. The middle blocker also had a team-high five blocks.
 
On the ground, junior libero Jessica Graham took in a match-high 19 digs and Santoro completed her team-high ninth double-double with 11.
 
For the Catamounts, George and Jordan Timmermann each had a team-high 12 kills. George hit a team-best .500 (12-2-20) and had six blocks. Katie O'Conner led the match with eight blocks and four Catamounts registered double-figure digs. Jo-Leigh Vervelde earned a double-double of 21 assists and 12 digs.
 
The Wofford volleyball team takes a short road trip to Greenville next Wednesday to go up against Furman at Alley Gym. Match time is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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