Box Score

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Kelly Taylor hit .471 with five blocks, three service aces and a match-high 10 kills as the Winthrop women's volleyball team downed Norfolk State 3-0 in the season opener for both at the 2008 Wake Forest Deacon Invitational at Reynolds Gym. Winthrop (1-0) won the match 25-10, 25-12, 25-12.

In each of the first two sets, NSU (0-1) kept it relatively close in the beginning. But with the points required to win a set reduced to 25 from 30, Winthrop proved to be too much for the Spartans. In the third set, Winthrop opened the game on a 16-4 run and NSU could not rebound before falling 25-12.

For Winthrop, Kellie Sellers led all players with a .600 hitting percentage, Kelsey Hall had 29 assists, and Janice Rivera had 12 digs.

NSU freshman Paige Gary-Canty (Winston-Salem, N.C.) led the Spartans with four kills, while freshman Breanna Allums (Channelview, Tex.) and junior Aurelia Isham (Lancaster, Tex.) contributed five digs each.

The Spartans take on host Wake Forest at 12:30 p.m. and play Davidson at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.