The Oglethorpe volleyball team improved to .500 on the season with a 3-0 sweep of Division II opponent Clark Atlanta Wednesday evening at Epps Gymnasium in Atlanta. The Stormy Petrels controlled the opening set throughout, then used mid-set comebacks in the second and third to take both and sweep the homestanding Panthers. The Petrels now sit at 7-7 on the year as they get set to head back into SAA play over the weekend.

The visitors ran off to a big lead to begin the match, starting on a 10-4 run. The Panthers answered with back-to-back points, which was followed by a period where the two teams traded scores. The Petrels led 17-13 late in the stanza. From that point, though, they kicked into gear with a 5-0 run, taking a 22-13 lead. Clark Atlanta mounted a bit of a comeback, but the Petrels closed out the set 25-19.

Clark Atlanta took a lead early in the second set, pushing out to a 10-7 edge. The Petrels responded with four straight points to take a one-point lead and the two sides traded points from there. The set was tied 13-13 several points later and the Panthers went on a 5-1 run, making it 18-14 in their favor. The Petrels responded with a 7-1 run to take the lead back, building it to 21-19. A 3-point stretch by Clark Atlanta gave them a 22-21 lead and they still led 23-22. A 3-point run by the Petrels put the set away, however, as they took a 2-0 lead in the match after a 25-23 win in the second set.

The Panthers got off to an early lead in the third set, also, as they built a 7-5 advantage. That was followed by a 6-0 run from the Petrels, though, as they turned the set around and took an 11-7 lead. The Petrels slowly extended their edge to 16-11, but Clark Atlanta responded with three straight points and cut the Oglethorpe lead to two. The visitors responded from there, though, rolling off four straight to obtain match point at 24-19. They eventually put the set away, 25-20, winning the match, 3-0.

Sophomore outside hitter Savanna Hockman led the Petrels with eight kills while fellow sophomore outside hitter Santreece Stephens put up seven and hit .286 for the match. Junior setter Jordan Jones led the squad with 23 assists while sophomore libero Anna Rash led all participants with 21 digs. Freshman defensive specialist Taryn North added 10 digs and a match-high four service aces. Sophomore Halli Nelson had two solo blocks.

"This was a good team win for us tonight against a tough Division II opponent," said Oglethorpe head coach Richie Tang. "We do still have a couple of points to work on as we go back into conference play, as we had 11 service errors. Overall, though, a very solid win. Santreece and Savanna did a great job for us tonight. I was also very happy with the defensive effort from Anna, Taryn and Halli."

The Petrels will hit the road again as they re-enter SAA play over the weekend. They'll travel to Jackson, Mississippi, to take on Millsaps at 2 p.m. Saturday before continuing to Birmingham, Alabama, to go against Birmingham-Southern at 2 p.m. Sunday.