BOONEVILLE, Miss. - Eliza Whitenton made a positive impression during her home debut for the Northeast Mississippi Community College volleyball program.
Whitenton had a pair of double-digit kill performances as the Lady Tigers split a doubleheader on Monday, August 25 inside legendary Bonner Arnold Coliseum.
Northeast got a clean sweep of Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) University's junior varsity squad in the opener before dropping a 3-1 decision in its inaugural meeting with Jackson State (Tenn.) Community College.
Whitenton had 29 total kills on the evening, including 18 against the Green Jays. The East Union High School graduate added 17 digs in the nightcap for her second double-double of the young season.
"Sophie's sets were placed perfectly," said Whitenton. "They had an open block and every time it was getting through. It all happened perfectly and I couldn't have done it without the passers either because their passes were very good."
The Lady Tigers posted one of the most dominant sets of its brief history with a 25-7 win versus the Lady Lions to start the contest. Cora Kelly and Ava Siegel both had runs of five consecutive points during their turns at the service line.
Whitenton had five kills in the second, which Northeast secured by 10 points. The Lady Tigers had five service aces in that set, including two apiece from Carine Delfin and Sophie Johnson.
The third set was the closest with Freed-Hardeman leading as late as 23-22. However, two attack errors by the Lady Lions and an ace from Whitenton sealed Northeast's second victory in a row.
The Lady Tigers and Jackson State split their first two sets. Northeast claimed the second by a score of 25-22 behind a 7-0 run that featured three more kills and a block by Whitenton.
Northeast lost two heartbreaking sets to end the matchup, but nearly pulled off a big comeback in the fourth. Addy Hicks had four kills as the Lady Tigers accounted for 11 of the last 16 points of the game after being down 20-12.
"They could have quit when they had that big seven-or-eight point stretch, but I told them, 'Just take it one point at a time,'" said Northeast head coach Brenda Mayes. "We were right there in it. The hustle and the reaction is there. It shows we're headed where we need to be."
Johnson tallied 51 assists on the day with 34 of them coming against the Green Jays. Northeast combined for 11 blocks with Allie Kirkland having a helping hand in eight of them.
The Lady Tigers begin the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference (MACCC) portion of their schedule on Wednesday, August 27 by welcoming Northwest Mississippi Community College for a 6 p.m. first serve.