The Pi Kappa Sigma Cobras looked to defend their status as volleyball champs last Thursday against the Beta Gamma Delta Patriots. The Cobras, who have won the last two years, defeated the Patriots in four sets to successfully “three-peat” and claim yet another Pi Kappa volleyball title.
The Patriots were 7-0 going into the game, while the Cobras were 5-2, with regular season losses coming from the Lanier Falcons and the Alpha Razorbacks. The Cobras had to defeat Z and Lanier in the first two rounds of the playoffs in order to make it to the championship round.
The first set was all Pi Kappa. The score was tied at 7-7 before the Cobras went on to finish the set on an 18-4 scoring rampage. Much of this success came from a strong Cobras front-court, which dominated the net.
The Patriots were blocked on numerous attacks, and they routinely resorted to tipping the ball over, though not very effectively.
The second set, however, was claimed by Beta Gamma. The Patriots forced several Cobra errors, and freshman Lorin Pegram provided some strong offense with his powerful spiking while senior Mark Sterr was there to support on both the defensive and offensive sides.
Beta took the early lead, but Pi Kappa was able to bring it within two points, 14-12. Sterr answered the call, though, spiking so powerfully on the next volley that he popped the ball. With a new ball in hand, Beta went on an 11-4 scoring run to win the set, 25-16.
The third set was close throughout, but the Cobras were able to maintain a small lead during much of the set. The Cobras’ spiking became too much for Beta to handle, as graduate assistant John Dalrymple and senior Paul Cadavos led the offense to a much-needed 25-17 victory to claim the third set and take a 2-1 set advantage over the Patriots.
The fourth and final set was all but dominated by the Cobras. Beta was able to stay within striking distance at the beginning, though, as they initially held the Cobras to a 9-7 lead.
Pi Kappa then went on a 9-0 run to capture all the momentum and eventually take the score to 24-11. The Patriots had a last-second surge and scored five unanswered points to close the gap to eight, but the Cobras’ Dalrymple ended all hopes of a comeback when he spiked one last time to finish the set 25-16 and win the third straight Pi Kappa volleyball championship.
