By Brian Hradsky
The Berry College Vikings defeated Southwestern University 3–2 on October 16 in Danville, Kentucky. Berry won the match 21–25, 25–19, 25–27, 29–27, 15–11. The victory moved the Vikings to 16–3 overall.
Vikings survive a long fourth set
Southwestern took the opening set and later moved ahead two sets to one. Berry needed extra points to claim the fourth set and keep the match alive. The Vikings then finished the deciding fifth set with a four-point margin.
Madie Whitehead, Keira Kruk and Ava Brovet were among the Berry attackers contributing during the early sets. Brovet supplied the kill that completed Berry’s second-set win. The back-and-forth sequence left the Vikings needing to recover more than once before they could secure the result.
GSB Take
The fourth set was the turning point because Berry had to survive extended pressure before it could even think about a deciding frame. Closing the fifth after that effort made the recovery more meaningful. This was a useful reminder that a strong record still has to be defended through difficult stretches inside individual matches.