NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk State rallied to beat North Carolina A&T 3-2 in an exhibition matchup on Saturday at Gill Gymnasium.
 
The Spartans narrowly dropped the first set 23-25, before winning back-to-back sets 25-23 and 25-17. North Carolina A&T rallied to take the fourth set in a back-and-fourth thriller 27-25, before the Spartans secured the win 15-11 in the final set.

Head coach Kathy Bullock called it a thrilling five-set battle. "I think we were resilient," Bullock said. "We've been working on being more resilient, working on pushing through and fighting, just to make sure that we were able to win those close sets and matches. Today, I thought we were very resilient and the team did a good job of coming together and making sure we scoring at the right time."
 
Gabrielle Gilbert led Norfolk State with 19 kills and added 12 digs. Kyleigh Moore chipped in eight kills, while Ava Berry posted nine kills on a .667 hitting percentage. Nehir Erimez ran the offense with 15 assists, and Jasmine Mataira added 14 more.
 
Jazeli Vandenburgh paced the defense with 25 digs, while Isis Castille, Reagan Chisholm and Berry combined for much of Norfolk State's net presence, helping the Spartans out-block the Aggies 8-6 for the match.
 
The first set opened with the teams' trading points through a 5-5 tie before the Aggies took over behind a strong hitting stretch. North Carolina A&T pushed its lead to 14-10, and after Norfolk State clawed within one at 17-16, the Aggies pulled away again. Sanders and Kostoff kept the Spartans within striking distance late, with Norfolk State trailing just 22-20, before North Carolina A&T closed it out 25-23 after a Spartan attack error off an Aggie block.
 
Norfolk State came out sharp in the second set, with Berry and Gilbert combining for an early 5-1 lead. The Aggies battled back, tying it at 8-8, and later at 22-22 after a string of Spartan hitting errors put the set in jeopardy. But Gilbert delivered down the stretch, and after a North Carolina A&T error gave the Spartans a 24-23 lead, before Moore's kill sealed the set win to tie the match.
 
Norfolk State took control from the opening serve in the third set. Gilbert opened the set with back-to-back service aces, and after the Aggies briefly tied it at 6-6, the Spartans ripped off a decisive run behind Gilbert and Sanders, going up 15-7. North Carolina A&T never found a rhythm against Norfolk State's block, and the Spartans closed out the set comfortably, 25-17, to take a 2-1 match lead.
 
The Aggies came out with energy in the fourth set, opening a 3-0 lead and building a cushion into the middle of the set. Norfolk State battled back to pull ahead 9-7 behind a strong hitting stretch of its own. From there the set turned into a slugfest with nine tie scores and three lead changes, with neither team pulling away. North Carolina A&T saved two set points, before pulling away from the Spartans 27-25 to force a fifth set.
 
Gilbert set the tone immediately, opening the set with back-to-back kills for a 2-0 Spartan lead. The Aggies answered to tie it at 4-4 and briefly grabbed the lead at 6-5, but Norfolk State's defense tightened from there. Erimez fed the Spartan attack down the stretch, and Norfolk State closed out the match on a Gilbert kill for the 15-11 win, capping the thrilling exhibition victory.
 
Norfolk State will play one more exhibition match against Elizabeth City State on Friday, Aug. 21 at 6 p.m. at Gills Gymnasium, before opening the regular season.
 
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