CHARLESTON, S.C. – Sharlissa de Jesus and Mellanie King became the first Bulldog duo to each record at least 20 kills in a match Monday evening in The Citadel's tough 3-2 (25-23, 16-25, 25-16, 22-25, 13-15) loss to Furman inside McAlister Field House.
 
de Jesus finished with a match-high 27 kills, while King finished with 20.
 
Score: Furman 3, The Citadel 2
Records: The Citadel (3-6, 1-3), Furman (2-2, 2-2)
Location: Charleston, South Carolina (McAlister Field House)
 
How it Happened

• The first set did not start the way the Bulldogs would have liked as the Paladins jumped out to a quick 4-1 advantage.
• The lead would continue to grow for Furman as a kill from Katie Murphy made it 17-10.
• After the Bulldogs fell behind 23-20, the set turned around on a kill from Maddy Cardenas.
• A second-straight kill from Cardenas and another from Sharlissa de Jesus tied the set, 23-23.
• An attack error from the Paladins gave the Bulldogs set point and Mellanie King completed the comeback with an ace.
• The second started with the Bulldogs jumping out to the 3-0 advantage.
• Furman responded by going on a 10-4 run to take the lead for good.
• The Citadel would pull back within two before a 5-0 Paladin run helped extend the advantage to 17-10.
• The Bulldogs were not able to mount a comeback in the set in falling 25-16.
• The third set belonged to the right arm of de Jesus as she rattled seven-straight points on her serve to give the Bulldogs the 10-3 lead.
• The momentum stayed with the Bulldogs and after a kill from King, The Citadel's lead grew to 20-10.
• Furman was able to make a mini run, but de Jesus put an end to the set with her 18^th kill of the match.
• The fourth set saw the Paladins jump out to an 8-2 advantage and force the Bulldogs to call timeout.
• The Citadel responded out of the timeout on a 7-1 run, highlighted by a pair of digs each from King and de Jesus.
• The Bulldogs would eventually push ahead to a 20-16 advantage, but the Paladins answered back to take the lead at 21-20.
• A service error would tie the set, 21-21, but the Paldins surged ahead to force a fifth set.
• The Bulldogs got off to a strong start in the fifth set as back-to-back kills from King gave The Citadel the 6-2 advantage.
• Furman would battle back to tie the match, 7-7, before the two teams alternating scoring on each of the next 10 points.
• The Paladins were able to score on back-to-back plays to set up match point.
• King kept the Bulldogs alive with another kill, but Courtney Hoffman ended the match with a kill.

 
Inside the Box Score

• The right arm of Sharlissa de Jesus was on full display as he finished the match with a season-high 27 kills. She added 11 digs for her third double-double in five matches this spring.
• She also added five service aces and a pair of block assists.
• The 27 kills are one off of her career high, and is tied for fifth on the school's single-match kills list. de Jesus owns four of the top eight single-match totals for kills.
• Mellanie King also added a double-double with 20 kills and 14 digs.
• The 20 kills for King equal a career high set against Furman on Oct. 26, 2018.
• The match marked the first time in program history that the Bulldogs had two players record at least 20 kills in a match.
• The Bulldogs finished with four players in double figures in digs. Kenzie Kellerman had 18 and freshman Jaelynn Elgert had a career-high 10.
• Gina Delancey finished with six kills, three block assists and one solo block.
• Amie Greene handed out 47 assists to go along with eight digs and two service aces.

 
Up Next
The Bulldogs return to action Feb. 14-15 at Mercer. Sunday's match is set to begin at 3 p.m., with Monday's match set for 6 p.m.