CONWAY, S.C.–The Coastal Carolina University volleyball team (19-10, 10-3 Big South) clinched a share of second place in the Big South Conference with a thrilling 3-2 win over Winthrop University (20-11, 9-4 Big South) Nov. 14, in Rock Hill, S.C. The Lady Chants won by scores of 23-30, 30-25, 30-28, 21-30 and 15-12. Coastal is now 4-1 in matches that go five games.

Winthrop took control in game one with an 8-0 run that featured four Coastal hitting errors as Winthrop took an 18-9 lead. The Lady Chants battled back to cut the lead to five at 27-22 off of two straight kills by sophomore Krista Kimble (Lake Forest, Calif./El Toro), but a kill by Sarah Billingsley at 29-23 gave the Eagles the victory.

Game two was tight throughout until three consecutive aces by sophomore Katherine Jensen (Vancouver, B.C./Sentinel Secondary) turned an 18-all game into a 21-18 lead. Freshman Laura Obert (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mother of Mercy) followed with a kill and after a Winthrop error, the Lady Chants led 23-18. Two kills by Obert gave Coastal a 25-19 lead but Winthrop answered with a 5-0 run before a kill by senior Sarah Bennett (Eagan, Minn./Eagan) gave the Lady Chants the 30-25 win and tied the match at one game apiece.

The third game started much like the second, as Coastal built an 18-14 lead before a Winthrop timeout. Winthrop got back into the game after two consecutive blocks cut the Coastal lead to one. Sophomore Jennifer Hampton (Lake Forest, Calif./El Toro) had a big ace at 20-18 and freshman Alicia Meyers (Temecula, Calif./Temecula Valley) followed that with a kill. At 23-21, Winthrop went on a 4-0 run, sparked by two kills from Lindsey Remmers, to give the Eagles a 24-23 lead. Winthrop took a two-point lead at 27-25 on a block, but Coastal came back with a 4-1 run, sparked by two hitting errors from Winthrop and kills by Hampton and Obert to take the 30-28 win.

Winthrop led early in game four and the Eagles took a 13-6 lead on a Remmers kill. Coastal cut the lead to 17-15 on a Jensen kill, but the Eagles came back to take a 22-17 lead on a Tori Grafeman kill. Winthrop scored eight of the last 11 points to force a fifth and deciding game.

The two teams traded side outs in the fifth game until a Kimble ace gave Coastal a 5-3 lead. A Winthrop hitting error gave the Lady Chants a three-point advantage at 6-3. A kill and ace by Winthrop cut the lead to one, but an Eagle hitting error gave Coastal a 7-5 lead. Obert’s kill gave Coastal an 8-6 lead as the teams traded sides. Another Obert kill and an Eagle hitting error gave Coastal a 10-7 advantage. Meyers attack extended the lead to 11-7 before Winthrop called a timeout. At 12-8, Bennett put one away to keep a four-point advantage. The teams again traded points and at 13-10, a Jensen kill set up match point, but a kill and service ace cut the lead to 14-12. Coastal won the match on a Winthrop service error.

Three Coastal players had 15 kills (Bennett, Meyers and Obert) while Jensen chipped in with 14. Jensen also had 17 digs and four service aces. Hampton had 60 assists and two blocks, while Obert had two solo blocks.

A Coastal win clinches at least a tie for second place. Coastal can earn second outright with a win tomorrow or a Winthrop loss to Charleston Southern University.

Coastal closes out the regular season Saturday, Nov. 15, against High Point University in High Point, N.C. The match starts at 2 p.m.