BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Trailing 2-0 in the match and tied at 23 in the third set, Western Carolina battled back to force a decisive fifth set against No. 2 seed Mercer in the Southern Conference Tournament Friday at Pete Hanna Center. However, Mercer held on in the fifth set for a 3-2 win, winning the match by scores of 25-18, 25-20, 23-25, 19-25, 15-11.
 
Western Carolina concludes the season at 11-8. Mercer improves to 15-7 and will play top-seeded Samford in the championship match Saturday at 5 p.m.
 
Junior Merry Gebel led WCU with a match-best 22 kills and tallied 13 digs for her 12^th double-double of the season. Freshmen Julia Gardon and Destinee Dorsey both tallied 15 digs, with Gardon just missing a double-double as she recorded nine kills. Senior Hannah Price dished out a match-best 40 assists and was credited with 11 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. 
 
Annie Karle led Mercer with 16 kills followed by Brittany Major with 15, Taylor Lynch with 14, and Jaida Howell with 11. Karle also tallied a match-best 24 digs.
 
Mercer opened the first set on a 6-2 run and led 13-6 following consecutive service aces by Rayanne de Oliveira. A Howell block gave the Bears a 24-14 lead in the stanza before the Catamounts tallied four straight points to pull within six, 24-18, after a Price kill. A Major kill clinched the set for the Bears.
 
Tied at 13 in the second set, Mercer tallied four of the next five points for a 17-14 edge. After a Gebel kill brought WCU within two, the Bears scored five straight for a 22-15 advantage. The Catamounts didn't go quietly, answering with five straight to pull within two, 22-20, before Mercer scored three straight points to take the set and a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
With the third set knotted at 13, the Catamounts tallied five of the next six points for an 18-14 lead after a Price kill. Mercer chipped away at the WCU lead and tied the set at 22 with a Howell kill. After the teams traded the next two points to remain deadlocked, a Gebel kill gave WCU set point with a Mercer error ending the set as WCU remained alive in the match.
 
Leading 11-9 in the fourth set, a kill by Johnna Robinson sparked a 6-1 run as the Catamounts took control of the fourth set. WCU led by no fewer than four points for the remainder of the frame as a Gebel kill closed out the set and evened the match at 2.
 
Mercer scored the first three points of the fifth set and led 10-5 following consecutive Howell kills. The Catamounts cut the deficit to three points on four occasions down the stretch before a Malia Randolph kill ended the match.
 
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