The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team saw a late rally fall short during a 3-1 (25-20, 25-19, 22-25, 25-19) loss to Mercer in the final match of the season series on Monday afternoon inside Maclellan Gymnasium.
Chattanooga drops to 5-7 overall and 3-7 in Southern Conference play following the loss. Mercer extends its winning streak to seven matches, all SoCon victories, to improve to 8-5 overall and 7-1 in league action.
Mercer dominated the first set when it came to efficiency, out attacking the home team by a .176% to .000% margin in the hitting percentage column.
UTC committed 11 attacking errors and 11 kills on 38 swings during a 25-20 Mercer set victory.
It was much of the same in the second with Mercer finishing the set with 15 kills and just six errors on 35 attacks (.257%) while Chattanooga recorded just 11 kills alongside seven errors on 34 swings (.118%). The Bears pulled out a 25-19 decision and moved ahead in the match, 2-0.
The Mocs came out firing in the must-win third set, racing out to a sizable 13-4 advantage in the early going. UTC capped off the set, 25-22, despite a Mercer rally that pulled them within two at 20-18. Chattanooga attacked at a .250% clip in the set with 14 kills and just five errors on 36 total attacks.
Mercer shutdown any comeback idea with a strong defensive effort in the fourth, forcing UTC into eight attacking errors and allowing only six kills to total a -.048% hitting percentage. The Bears raced away with a 25-19 set win and a 3-1 victory in the match for consecutive days.
Maia Rackel (Signal Mountain, Tenn.) paced the offense with a team-high 11 kills at a .194% clip while Mikaela Gauthreaux (Johns Creek, Ga.) showcased her veteran play with eight kills at an efficient .250% attacking percentage. Gylian Finch (Mount Morris, Ill.) reached double digits with 10 kills and completed the double-double with 11 digs.
In addition to Finch, two other Mocs recorded double digit digs with Makenzie Jordan (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) leading the way with 14 and Brenna Everingham (Noblesville, Ind.) following with 14.
Sophia Bossong (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) directed the offense with a match-high 34 assists and stuffed the stat sheet elsewhere, collecting three kills, seven digs, an ace and a solo block.
Chattanooga (5-7, 3-7 SoCon) hits the road next weekend for a two-match series in Charleston, S.C., against The Citadel on Sunday and Monday, March 7 and 8. Match coverage links and start times are located on the schedule page and will be updated ahead of first serve.