DANVILLE, Ky. – Centre volleyball played its second doubleheader in as many days as part of the Colonel invitational. The Colonels dropped their Saturday opener to Millikin in three close sets before falling in four against Otterbein.
 
Game 1: Millikin 3, Centre 0
 
- The opening set saw the visiting Big Blue take the early lead and keep it through the middle stages. Centre rallied with five straight points to tie it at 16-16 after a tandem block by Emily Goddin and Emily Sullivan, but they never got over the hump as Millikin held onto the lead and won 25-22.
- In the second set it was the Colonels who got off to the fast start as a 5-0 run gave Centre its biggest lead at 15-9. Centre was able to hold onto the lead until Millikin chipped away and eventually tied it at 22-22. A Goddin kill put Centre back on top at 23-22, but Millikin scored the next three to win by a score of 25-23.
- The Big Blue kept the pressure on in the third set, coming out on fire to grab an 18-8 lead. The Colonels cut into the deficit as they scored six of the next seven points and two kills from Goddin narrowed the gap to two points, but it wasn't enough as Millikin finished off the match with a 25-22 win.
 
Game 2: Otterbein 3, Centre 1
 
- Centre trailed 14-9 in the opening set before rallying back with a big rally and taking the lead with two straight kills from Isabel Thornton and an ace from Madi Barron. The Colonels never trailed from there as Goddin put the finishing touches on a 25-21 win.
- The visiting Cardinals bounced back in a big way in the second set, scoring the first nine points on the way to a 25-12 win to tie the match.
- The third set was back and forth the whole way as Centre and Otterbein traded leads throughout. Two straight kills from Syd Bietz tied the game at 20-20 before Otterbein scored five straight to take the lead with a 25-20 win.
- The fourth set played out in nearly identical fashion as the two teams played each other closely the whole way. Eventually, Otterbein strung together enough points to create some distance and won by a 25-19 margin.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORES
 
- Goddin led the Colonels with ten kills and two blocks against Millikin.
- Emily Gardner led all players with 24 assists in game 1 and 28 in game 2.
- The Colonels held a 51-48 edge in digs against Millikin, with Madi Barron pacing Centre with 13. She also led the Colonels with 19 digs against Otterbein
- Against Otterbein, four different players paced Centre with nine kills, with Goddin hitting .389 to lead the way.
 
NEXT UP
 
The Centre volleyball team will open conference play next as they host Oglethorpe on Sept. 23.