Winston-Salem State Lady Rams (4-21) dug deep and found enough effort to take a 3-1 win over rival North Carolina A&T Lady Aggies (1-21), Sunday afternoon at the C.E. Gaines Center.
With the win, the Lady Rams earned their third win in their last five matches, including a pair of home wins.
The match was a hotly contested affair with both teams commanding the scoreboard at differing points in the match. In the first set, it was the Lady Rams who battled back after falling behind, 18-24. Sophomore setter Alexandria Brown recorded a kill and served five straight WSSU scores that tied the match 24-24. She recorded a service ace during the run and forced three NCAT errors during the run. The Lady Rams would go on to finish the set when a pair of Lady Aggie attack errors sealed the 29-27 WSSU first set win.
The Lady Rams got off to a slow start in the second set, falling behind 4-7, but battled back to take the 25-17 win. WSSU junior Ashley Harris powered the effort with five kills in the set. In the third set, it was the Lady Rams who saw a big lead disappear late. After taking a 24-19 lead over the Lady Aggies, the Lady Rams allowed five straight points to the Lady Aggies, including three Lady Aggie kills and a service ace to tie the match. The latter points of the set saw the Lady Rams take the 26-28 loss and head into the fourth set leading 2-1.
The Lady Rams would regain their composure in the fourth set and taking command with an early 8-3 run and went on to take the final set, 25-14.
WSSU senior Annika Barnwell powered the Lady Rams' effort with 23 of WSSU's 51 total kills in the match. Junior Ashley Harris added a double-double 10 kills and 15 digs in the match. Sophomore setter Alexandria Brown added 44 assists while fellow sophomore Jasmine Frazier added four solo blocks.
The Lady Rams won't have long to rest as the team will return to action on Tuesday when they host the Campbell Camels in a 7:00 p.m. match on Tuesday evening.