LYNCHBURG, Virginia -- The Kenyon College volleyball team split a two-game non-conference set in Lynchburg, Virginia, in a pair of 3-0 matches. The Owls won 25-19, 30-28, 25-18 against Randolph College (9-10, 1-6 ODAC) before falling 25-19, 25-21, 25-18 against the hosting University of Lynchburg (7-9, 2-4 ODAC).

The Owls started their road trip on the right foot with a 25-19 win against Randolph in the first set. Kenyon outhit the Wildcats .156 to .061 on one fewer attack, thanks to a 12-9 edge in kills. Senior middle Paige Milhon starred for the Owls in set one, hitting .429 with a 4-for-7 mark and two blocks.

Kenyon led 17-13 in set two, but a 7-0 Randolph run flipped the script. The Owls responded and took five of the following six points to claim a 22-21 edge and force a timeout. Milhon powered the comeback with two kills and a block assist. An Owls' attacking error and a Randolph ace put the momentum with the Wildcats, but both squads traded blows as neither could pull two points ahead until back-to-back kills from Milhon gave Kenyon a 30-28 set-two win. 

The Owls won the first four points in set three, but Randolph battled back to take a 7-6 lead. Kenyon won nine of the next 10 points to take a 15-8 lead, but the Wildcats answered again with a 9-3 run to cut the lead to 18-17. However, the Owls locked in after a timeout, winning seven of the following eight points to clinch a 25-18 win in set three and a 3-0 sweep in the match. 

Kenyon hit .171 in set three compared to a .000 mark from a Randolph team that made eight kills and eight errors. Overall, the Owls held a .218-.088 advantage in attack percentage and a whopping 9-3 edge in blocks. Milhon led the Owls with 15 kills on a very efficient .609 clip, adding four block assists and a dig. First-years Kathryn McCaffrey and Rebecca Gwynne added seven kills apiece. McCaffrey hit .333 and assisted on five blocked balls, while Gwynne had seven digs and three block assists. Elizabeth Sonza, a first-year notched 16 digs, senior setter Jac Cousineau dished 23 assists, and senior Eras Yager hit .357 with six kills.

After finishing on the right side of a sweep in game one, Kenyon was on the other end of a 3-0 decision, one that Lynchburg won 25-19, 25-21, 25-18. It was tough sledding for both offenses in the opening set, with Lynchburg hitting .062 and Kenyon hitting -.105. The Owls held leads of 4-0 and 10-7, but the Hornets used two 8-1 runs to close out the visitors.

Kenyon bounced back in set two, finishing with 10 more kills (15) than set one (5) while matching Lynchburg with a .189 hitting percentage. However, the Hornets committed three fewer errors and went ahead 2-0 with a tight 25-21 win. Lynchburg saved its best for last, hitting a whopping .407 in set three while holding Kenyon to a .167 clip. The set was tied 16-16, but the Hornets completed the 3-0 sweep with a 9-2 run.

Senior Macy Reimbold led Kenyon with nine kills while hitting .074, while Lindsey Abramson, a junior, had eight kills and 12 digs. Sonza also added a dozen digs, while Cousineau notched a double-double with 16 assists and 11 digs. Gwynne (.143) and Yager (.188) tallied six and five kills, respectively.

The Owls (3-14, 1-1 NCAC) return to North Coast Athletic Conference competition with a pair of home games. Kenyon hosts Denison University (8-9, 2-0 NCAC) on Wednesday, Oct. 12, at 7 p.m. before welcoming nationally-ranked Wittenberg University (14-3, 3-0 NCAC) at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15.