WILMINGTON, N.C.- William & Mary volleyball defeated UNCW in a thrilling five-set match Friday night in North Carolina. The Tribe improve to 1-2 in conference play with the win powered by a double-double from Lauren Merrill and a career-high 21 digs from Gabi Ganley. 
 
How It Happened
The Tribe got out to a scorching start behind a 10-2 run powered by a pair of Kate Dedrick kills and Kaitlyn Ferguson blocks. An ace from Gabi Ganley and a quick kill from setter Autumn Brenner would extend the lead to 14-4. The Seahawks narrowed the gap to 17-10 before a tremendous reception from Ferguson led to another Dedrick kill giving the Tribe a 10 point lead. The Tribe would ride the advantage to a 25-15 first set win as Julia Brown's second kill gave the Green and Gold a 1-0 lead. 
 
Once again it was William & Mary getting out to a quick lead in the second set snatching five of the first six points. Moments later a four-point run from the Seahawks would give UNCW their first lead of the night in an 8-7 advantage. UNCW extended the lead to 21-14 behind a pair of 3-0 scoring runs. The Seahawks took the final four points of the second stanza en route to a 25-14 win. 
 
UNCW kept the momentum rolling into the third set with a 4-1 run producing a quick 6-2 lead. The Tribe used a 3-0 run to cut the Seahawk lead to 10-8. The home team would never trail again in the set, coasting to a 25-21 win despite being held by the Tribe defense to a sub .100 hitting percentage. 
 
A pair of Lauren Merrill kills shot the Tribe to a 4-2 lead early in the fourth. The sophomore outside would send over a pair of aces to extend the margin to 7-3 before UNCW answered with three straight points. The Tribe would battle back as Merrill's 10th kill of the match gave Doyle's squad a 13-10 advantage. After UNCW tied the set at 15-15, Kate Dedrick threw down a pair of kills and tacked on a pair of aces to open up a four-point Tribe lead. Merrill would add two more kills to finish off a 25-21 Tribe win pushing the match to the fifth set limit. 
 
The Tribe used a service error and a Merrill smash to open up a 2-0 lead in the deciding set. The Tribe would open up a 6-4 lead behind a pair of Dedrick kills, but the Seahawks would rally to bring the ultimate set to an 8-7 count. Kills by Merrill and Brown would advance the advantage to 10-7 before a pair of UNCW points would once again narrow the gap. The Seahawks would take their first lead of the set at 13-12, but a Claire Farrell kill and an error from UNCW fave the Tribe the 14-13 lead, a long rally capped by an error from the Seahawks would give the Tribe the 3-2 win. 

Inside the Numbers
Freshman Gabi Ganley jump started the Tribe defense with a career-high 21 digs. Lauren Merrill loaded up the stat sheet with 15 kills, 12 digs, three aces, and two blocks it was the sophomore's third double-double on the season. Kate Dedrick reached the 10-kill mark for the seventh time in the past eight matches. Julia Brown owned the net leading all attackers with a .571 hitting percentage. Autumn Brenner eclipsed the 30-assist mark for the third time this season with 36 helpers in the win. Kaitlyn Ferguson's six total blocks tied a career-high. 

Notes
The match marked the first time since the season's opening weekend that the Tribe went to five sets. Gabi Ganley started at Libero for the first time this season. The Tribe's win moved the all-time series to 52-13 in favor of the Green and Gold and snapped a three-match UNCW win streak. 
 
Quotes
"Chip was amazing, she put away balls at critical moments of the match, played all the way around for the entirety of the match and put together a complete performance. Without her, we would not have won. JB didn't error and created a ton of opportunities for our pin attackers, too. I was happy with both liberos controlling teh court and bouncing back after sets two and three, nad Gabi for stepping into a new role and owning it. Our assistant coaches did an excellent job prepping the girls this week and it paid off. We will enjoy this one tonight and get back to work tomorrow." - Tim Doyle 
 
Up Next
The Tribe will continue their road trip with a Sunday afternoon match at Charleston. The Green and Gold will face the Cougars at 1:00 p.m. in the Palmetto State.