ROCK HILL, S.C. - The sixth-ranked Charleston Southern Lady Buccaneers and No. 3 High Point Panthers battled for four sets, and HPU earned its first berth in the Big South volleyball final with a 3-1 (23-25, 26-24, 25-18, 25-22) victory Friday, Nov. 19 at Winthrop Coliseum.

CSU concludes its season at 13-20, while HPU (21-12) will take on the winner of Winthrop and Liberty in the final Saturday at 2 p.m. This marks the second season in a row in which the Lady Bucs have qualified for the conference semifinal.

The Lady Bucs posted a gritty 25-22 victory in set one. High Point then fought off set point in the second set, outlasting CSU, 26-24. Following a 25-18 win in set three, the Panthers held off a late CSU rally for the 25-22 win.

High Point hit .295 for the match, posting 60 kills, while CSU recorded 52 kills at a .200 pace. The Panthers led in blocks, 12 to 7.5, and held a slight, 51-50 edge in digs.

Senior Amanda Hill led the way for CSU with 16 kills and added 13 digs for her 21st double-double of the season. Hill became the third player in Big South history with 1,900 or more career kills, as she finished her standout career with 1,905 kills and 1,535 digs.

Senior Cori Holeman registered eight kills and six block assists, adding two aces. She has posted 325 block assists and 388 total blocks for her career, ranking second at CSU in block assists. Senior Emily Libertowski registered 15 digs to pace the Bucs, closing out her career with 976 digs, good for 10th in program history.

Senior Amberle Trinder posted seven kills and one block assist, while classmate Tricia Rodl contributed seven digs and an ace. Amy Nokes posted 44 assists, giving her 1,042 for the season.

Kayla Klinger posted 10 kills, her second straight 10-kill match in the tournament. Crissy Skokan came through with six kills and three blocks.

High Point's Audie Gonzalez led all players with 20 kills and added three service aces. Megan Smith collected 18 kills and 11 digs. Maddie Simpson paced all players with 57 assists.

High Point started out swinging, building an early 7-5 lead in the first set. The Panthers kept the lead until 8-7 until a 6-1 CSU run made it 13-9. Nokes registered a dig, Hill posted two kills, and Holeman added two block assists during the rally. The Lady Bucs extended their lead to six at 21-15 with a 4-0 run, punctuated by two Holeman aces.

The Panthers stormed all the way back to tie the set at 22-22 with a 7-1 rally. Rodl then gave the Lady Bucs a set-point opportunity at 24-22 with an ace. Trinder ended set one with a kill, giving CSU the 25-23 win. Hill posted four kills during the first set for the Bucs, while Megan Smith registered four kills to lead the Panthers. Each team recorded 11 kills and three service aces, with CSU hitting .172 compared to .133 for HPU.

The match drew even at a set apiece with a 26-24 High Point victory in set two. Smith connected for seven kills during the set, while Gonzalez added six. Klinger posted four kills for CSU. High Point led for a majority of the set, and held a late 21-17 edge before Michaela Luna capped a three-point rally with an ace to pull to within one point at 21-20. Five rally points ensued, after which CSU gained a set-point opportunity at 24-23. High Point scored the final three points of the set for the 26-24 win.

CSU took a brief 3-2 lead after five serves in the third set, with Trinder, Hill and Holeman posting kills on the first three sideouts. Following two High Point scores, Hill tied the set with a kill at 4-4. The Panthers then staged a 5-0 rally for a 9-4 advantage, and led by as many as six at 13-7. The Lady Bucs battled back to within two points, 14-12, when Holeman earned a kill for CSU's fourth point in a row. High Point led 22-16 before Trinder and Hill earned kills to pull to within four, 22-18. The Panthers struck for the final three points to win the third set, 25-18, for a 2-1 lead in the match. CSU hit .267 during the third set, while High Point connected at a .440 clip.

The Lady Bucs led set four, 9-6, after 15 serves, with High Point recording three service errors and Klinger and Trinder registering two kills apiece. The Panthers responded with a 4-1 rally to tie it at 10-10, and evened the score again at 14-14. HPU took a 17-14 lead with a 4-0 rally, and led, 20-16 following a Miichell Chakirelis kill. Hill posted two kills around a pair of HPU attack errors in a 4-1 rally, bringing CSU to within one at 21-20. Following two Panther points, Klinger and Holeman earned kills for a 23-22 score. High Point's Wallin converted at 25-23 to win the match.

QUOTES
Charleston Southern Head Coach Danyel Bellush
"We fought hard today, but fell short. High Point is a fantastic team and I give them a lot of credit."

High Point Head Coach Jason Oliver
"Amanda Hill came out and had a great match for Charleston Southern. We were just a little more disciplined at the end and that was the difference in the match. Megan Smith and Audie Gonzalez were incredible. They settled us down, showed focus and controlled the game on serve receive. CSU played very well, I am so happy to come away with the win."