Berry College topped Maryville College (Tenn.) in three sets (25-15, 25-19, 25-13) in the first round of the NCAA Division III Volleyball Championship at the Woodruff PE Center on the campus of Emory University.

The Vikings stifled the Maryville attack, limiting them to a hitting percentage of .010 and racking up seven total team blocks along the way. Berry leaned on their seniors throughout the match as Jordan Leitch, Emily Hancock, and Carson VanCampen led the way on Friday afternoon.

In the first set, Berry held the Scots to a hitting percentage of just -.029 and forced nine total attacking errors, as VanCampen and Leitch each picked up two blocks. On the offensive side, Hancock delivered five kills and was on the back end of half of Leitch's 10 first-set assists. Berry benefited from some shaky Maryville services in set two, which saw the Scots accumulate five service errors. VanCampen and Leitch also picked up four and three more blocks in that game, respectively, driving the Scots' hitting percentage down to -.051 through two sets. Maryville began to get on track in the final game, producing an improved hitting percentage of .208. But the uptick in the Scots' efficeincy coincided with the Vikings' third-set hitting rate of .393, which allowed Berry to pull away with the win in convincing fashion. 

Senior Dejane Hester-Taylor paced Maryville with six kills as freshman Natalie Watts handeled defensive duties, coming up with 10 digs. Sophomore Meredith Bonee finished as the Scots' set leader with 13 assists. For Berry, Leitch finished with 27 assists, Hancock ended up with 12 kills, and VanCampen walked off with five blocks.

The Vikings snapped Maryville's 19-match winning streak and will now face Colorado Colllege tomorrow (Nov. 16) at 2:30 P.M. EST.