WINSTON-SALEM, NC – The Winston-Salem State Lady Rams (11-7) extended their winning streak to seven matches, Wednesday evening when they took an impressive three-set win over the Bluefield State Blues (11-12). The Lady Rams had to fight hard to get past a scrappy Bluefield State team that showed a lot of fight throughout the match.

The Lady Rams took the win behind a strong overall effort with 31 total kills, 43 digs, and 18 total blocks in the match. The tandem of junior right side hitter Olivia Owens and freshman outside hitter Jasmine Smith combined for 18 kills with nine kills each in the match. Smith barely missed out on the double-double as she recorded 12 digs as well. Freshman libero Haley Miller led the team with 13 digs. Senior middle blocker Chelsea Violenes continued her recent string of strong play with five total blocks (one solo) in the match. 

The Lady Rams looked really good early as the team cruised to a 25-14 win in the opening set. The team took control of the match early with a 17-5 run that left the Lady Rams with an 18-6 lead. After pushing their lead to as many as 14 points (20-6), the Lady Rams had to fend off a late 8-5 rally by the Blues to seal the 25-14 win.  

The momentum seemed to carry over into the second set for the Lady Rams as they once again jumped out to a 14-8 lead, but the Blues would not go away easily. The Blues staged a 10-4 run that left the set tied at 18-18. However, the Lady Rams answered with back-to-back-to-back scores on a Smith service ace and a pair of Bluefield State attack errors that put the Lady Rams ahead 21-18. From there, the Lady Rams went on to pull out the 25-21 second set victory.

The third set of the match was a thrilling one as the Blues would not go down easily. After jumping out to an early 6-1 lead, the Lady Rams had to fend off an 8-3 run by the Blues that tied the set 9-9. However, the Lady Rams soon kicked things into gear when they rattled off six unanswered points to take control of the set 15-9. The Lady Rams remained in control of the set until the Blues scored three straight points to cut the WSSU lead down to three points, 23-20. The action heated up from there as the Lady Rams managed to get the two points that they needed in the midst of a furious 3-2 run that sealed the Lady Rams' three-set victory.

With the win, the Lady Rams improve to 11-7. The team will return to action, Saturday when they head to Tigerville, S.C. to take part in a tri-match against Limestone and host North Greenville. For more information on Lady Rams volleyball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.