MOUNT BERRY, Ga. - Viking volleyball kicked off the Berry Invitational with a convincing 3-0 win over Covenant, but fell to No. 2 ETBU by a final score of 3-1.

Game One: Berry 3 – Covenant 0 

Berry's offense was powered by a game-high 10 kills from Madie Whitehead and 7 from Keira Kruk. Ava Brovet was up to her usual activities, as she dished out 22 assists to pace the Viking attack. Defensively, libero Andrea Hurt patrolled the back line with efficiency, stacking up 8 digs to lead the team. 

The Scots would hang tough early on in the first set, keeping things interesting with a 3-2 advantage over the Vikings. Lura Underwood had other plans as she exploded for two impressive kills. This spurt led to a 7-0 run that was rounded out by two service aces from Ailee England. Not looking back with a 19-11 advantage in set one, the Vikings rattled off 6 consecutive points to win the first set 25-11. 

It was all Vikings in the second set, as they scored 11 out of the first 15 points, with kills from Kruk and Cali Armstead shaking the Cage Center. A balanced attack spearheaded by Madie Whitehead and finished off by Hope Kimsey ended the second set by a final score of 25-12. 

The final set was the most competitive of all, as the Scots continued to battle. With a two-score advantage 19-21, the Vikings pulled up their bootstraps and rallied behind a Whitehead kill, as an error finished from Covenant finished the game off, with a 25-22 set three victory to complete the sweep. 


Game Two: Berry 1 - ETBU 3

 On Friday night, Madie Whitehead etched her name into Berry Volleyball history. With 26 points in four sets, Whitehead broke an eight year record against No. 2 East Texas Baptist University (ETBU). Whitehead's remarkable outing in front of her home crowd at The Cage Center also edged her one step nearer to a trifecta. She now stands second in Berry history with 22 kills in four sets.

The No. 14 Vikings (14-3, 5-1 SAA) fell in four sets (25-18, 24-26, 18-25, 23-25) to their much-awaited rival ETBU (17-0). Ava Brovet tallied 42 assists on the night. Libero Andrea Hurt put her body on the line throughout the match, totaling 20 digs.

The Vikings owned the Tigers in the first set of the game. A kill by Keira Kruk put Berry up early. As soon as the first ball found the floor of the Tiger's side of the court, Berry fans erupted. Energy pulsed through the stands. Fans roared, parents waved pompoms, and the Tigers found themselves deep in hostile Viking ground. The score remained within one in either direction until Berry's 19th point of the game. A kill by Whitehead put the Vikings up 19-17, the largest lead up to this point in the set. Kruk followed with a kill set perfectly by Brovet, extending the lead. The Tigers only scored once more in the set before the Vikings went on a diabolical scoring spree that propelled them into the second set of the game up 1-0.

The Cage Arena, still riding the momentum of the Vikings' first-set dominance, roared as the score hit 10–9 in the second in favor of the Vikings. The momentum, however, shifted towards the Tiger's side after their claws capitalized on three back-to-back Viking errors. At 14-11 in favor of the Tigers, the Vikings were finally able to take advantage of one ETBU service error to tighten the score. A few Whitehead kills and service aces from both Maddie Dahl and Lura Underwood caused the arena to erupt as the score was tied at 19-19. Both sides played a fairly clean game for the remainder of the set, but the Tigers came out on top after two unanswered kills that propelled them to a 26-24 advantage. 

In the third set, the Vikings found themselves in an early seven point bind. Up 10–3, the Tigers put the Vikings on their heels, capitalizing on three costly mistakes. Accumulating seven errors in the set, the Vikings were unable to get comfortable on the court, falling 2-1 as they headed into the fourth set.

In the fourth and final set, ETBU raced to a 4–0 lead behind back-to-back kills and Berry attack errors. The Tigers maintained control, stretching the advantage to 11–4. Berry fought back behind Brovet's serving run and kills from Madie and Underwood, cutting the deficit to 13–9. Momentum shifted again when service errors plagued both sides, but ETBU capitalized at key moments, pushing the lead to 20–14. Berry mounted a late rally, pulling within 22–21 after a string of kills from Whitehead, Underwood, and Cali Armstead. The comeback, however, fell just short. ETBU took the set 25–23 to remain undefeated on the season.

The Vikings will look to bounce back against SAA opponent Oglethorpe University on Saturday afternoon at 11:00 a.m. for Parents Day at The Cage Center.