August 27, 2006
Davidson 3, High Point 1
HIGH POINT, N.C.-The Davidson Wildcats volleyball team won its third straight match with a 3-1 (30-23, 25-30, 30-14, 30-23) victory over High Point on Sunday afternoon at the Millis Center.
With the win, the Wildcats improve to a perfect 3-0 on the season, while High Point falls to 0-2.
Senior outside hitter Liz Williamson led both teams with 16 kills, while sophomore opposite Lindsay Paroczai contributed 14 kills and four blocks while hitting .385. Sophomore middle blocker Kittery Neale turned in another solid effort for the Wildcats, recording 11 kills and four blocks.
Audie Gonzalez led the Panthers, who were outhit by Davidson .150 to just .077 in the match, with 10 kills.
Game one was back and forth until the end when Davidson pulled away behind the serve of senior setter Jenna Dykstra, who had a match-high 45 assists.
With Dykstra serving, the Wildcats won five straight points at the end of the game to go up 28-22, before taking the first game on a High Point attack error.
High Point bounced back and was in control from the beginning of game two, and Davidson never held a lead as they surrendered their first game of the season by a score of 30-25 behind ten unforced errors at the net. Gonzalez was strong for the Panthers, picking up four of her ten kills in the game.
Despite surrendering the first two points of game three, the Wildcats fought back to take a commanding 30-14 win in game three and resume control of the match. In the most dominant game, Davidson went up by as a margin as large as 21-13 behind the strong serve of Neale, who recorded three of her six service aces in the game.
In game four, the Panthers stayed close early, but the attack of Williamson and Paroczai proved too much for High Point, as the Wildcats closed off the match with a 30-23 victory. Williamson posted three straight kills to give her team a 19-13 edge, and sophomore middle blocker Alison Dwyer punched home the match-winning kill for the 'Cats.
Davidson will host the Wildcat Classic next weekend at Belk Arena. The six-team field features No. 3 Washington, No. 15 Ohio University, Morehead State, Liberty and Portland. Davidson will face Washington at 8 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 31 in its first match of the tournament.
August 26
Georgia Southern 3, Charleston Southern 1
STATESBORO, Ga. ? The Georgia Southern volleyball team recorded its 300th win since the start of the program in 1985 with a 3-1 victory over Charleston Southern in the final match of the Georgia Southern Invitational.
The Eagles took the first game of the match 30-22, recording only four attack errors in that stanza. GSU lost its first game of the season in the second frame of the match. In the end, Charleston Southern came up with the victory 30-27, evening the score at one-one. The Eagles scored 10 straight points in game three, and held on to the lead, winning 30-13. In a nail-biter of a fourth game, Georgia Southern pulled out the match victory, outscoring the Buccaneers 30-23.
“This win goes out to the teams and coaches who were at Georgia Southern before this 2006 team,” said head coach Nicole McCray. “We were just lucky enough to be here the night it happened. This was a tough tournament. Every team came in, played hard and gave it their best shot. Charleston Southern is a great team. They blocked us well and managed to exploit some of our weaknesses. That gives us something to work on this coming week.”
Christy Dowd, who was named Tournament MVP, had 28 kills and 11 digs in the match.
“Christy played great tonight,” added McCray. “She was in the zone and no one could stop her.”
Sophomore Mae Chabra had 27 assists on the night, and senior Staci Anderson came up with 24 digs for the Eagles. Junior Bailey Coleman recorded double digits in kills and digs, with 11 each. Coleman and senior Jennifer Schenk were named to the All-Tournament Team.
“Again tonight was a total team effort. Our primary passers did a great job getting the ball to the setters and our middles held up well against their middles. Schenk is our silent leader. She goes in and does her job. She stays really focused on blocking and she stayed disciplined against their strong hitters. Bailey is the workhorse of our team and our primary passer. She can pass, play defense, serve and hit, and it takes someone who is in shape to do that. She was consistent through the whole weekend and getting All-Tournament is a great accomplishment for her and Schenk.”
Georgia Southern 3, Savannah State 0
The Georgia Southern volleyball team set a new record for fewest points allowed in a three-game match (23), defeating Savannah State 3-0 (30-6, 30-11, 30-6) in the fourth match of the GSU Invitational Saturday.
The Eagles went up 6-0 after five attack errors by Savannah State on six serves. Georgia Southern had two separate 10-point scoring runs that went unanswered by the Tigers. The Eagles won the game 30-6. After going up 16-5 on an attack error by Savannah State, the Eagles never let the Tigers within 10 points of the lead in game two. GSU took advantage of five more Tiger attack errors and went on to win 30-11. With the score 9-6, Eagle junior Bailey Coleman served out the match, reeling off 21-straight service points. Thanks to six kills from sophomore Christy Dowd and more errors from the Tigers, the Eagles took game three 30-6.
“With us passing so well, it really allows our middles and outside hitters to get to the ball,” said head coach Nicole McCray. “Our setters are doing a great job too. It is a total team effort. Savannah State came in here and exploited our weaknesses. It’s difficult to play on a Saturday at noon, and they came in here and stayed with us.”
Dowd and Coleman led the match for the Eagles with 14 and 11 kills, respectively. Setter Mae Chabra had 23 assists in the match, followed by freshman Natalie Rodriguez (15).
“Bailey and Christy are both playing really well and getting the ball down,” added McCray. “As far as our setters, I think that great setting comes from that first contact with the ball. Our passers are doing a great job, and that allows the setters to distribute the ball that puts us in a great situation.”
Three Eagles tied for the lead in digs in the match with ten ? Dowd, Staci Anderson and Flavia Pereira.
Georgia Southern tallied 43 kills to Savannah State’s 15, and posted a .437 hitting percentage compared to -.121 for Savannah State.
Georgia Southern’s next match will be versus Lafayette, Friday, Sept. 1 at the Jacksonville Invitational in Jacksonville, Fla.
All Tournament Team
April Hayes ? Savannah State
Jenni Shepherd ? Charleston Southern
Rachel Templin ? Campbell
Ashley Weers ? Campbell
Bailey Coleman ? Georgia Southern
Jennifer Schenk ? Georgia Southern
Tournament MVP
Christy Dowd
UNCG 3, Winston-Salem State 0
UNCG 3, UNCW 0
WILMINGTON, NC -- Senior Theresa Hart earned MVP honors as UNC Greensboro went onto win the UNCW Invitational. The Spartans defeated Winston-Salem State, 3-0, in their first game of the day. UNCG went on to beat host UNC Wilmington in the final match of the tournament, 3-0. Hart and freshmen Catherine Hanners and Lisa Fawell were named to the All-Tournament team.
Hanners led Spartans (4-0) with 12 kills and seven service aces against Winston-Salem State. The outside hitter from Richmond, VA also contributed six digs. Freshman Branagan Fuller followed closely to Hanners. The Temecula, CA product finished with 11 kills and five aces and had six digs as well. Fawell dished out 35 assists and added one kill and one ace.
The Spartans dominated throughout the entire match. UNCG led by as much as 13 points in game one and won the game 30-20. The Spartans finished game two on a 6-1 run and took the game 30-26. In game three, Hanners helped the Spartans go on an 8-0 run by serving four aces. The Spartans captured the final game 30-11.
In their final match against host UNC Wilmington, the Spartans were led by Hart, who finished with 18 kills, two blocks and five digs. Senior Hilary Overby and junior Lauren Keiser added nine kills, four aces and two blocks each. Fawell finished with 40 assists and Hanners had 20 digs.
Hart ended the tournament with 40 kills, 18 digs, 10 service aces and five blocks. Fawell handed out 143 assists in four games and Hanners added 17 service aces, 13 kills and 49 digs overall.
This marks the first time since September of 1998 that the Spartans have won in-season tournament, and it is the program's first 4-0 start since 1984 when the Spartans won their first 17 matches.
UNCG continues play when they travel to Buies Creek, NC to take on Campbell on Tuesday. Match time set for 7pm.
Wofford 3, Norfolk State 0
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. -- Wofford volleyball defeated Norfolk State 3-0 (30-26, 30-27, 30-18) Saturday in its second match of the UMES Kick-Off Classic in Princess Anne, Md., to improve to 2-0 on the season.
The Terriers struggled to find their rhythm in the first two games, but the gameplan came together in the final game as they slammed 14 kills against one error on 31 total attacks, producing a .419 hitting percentage.
“We started off playing a little slow, but once everyone got on the same page we were able to control the game,” said head coach Corey Helle.
The Terriers had two players reach double-digit kills in the match as freshman outside hitter Sarah Twitty notched 10 in 28 total attack attempts and sophomore middle blocker Liz Sheets connected on 10 of her 21 attempts. Twitty also added seven digs and a team-high four service aces. She leads the team with 19 total kills.
Freshman setter Joanna Suddath contributed 25 assists, one block and led Wofford with 13 digs against the Spartans. She has 19 total digs in two matches and shares the team lead with freshman Sarah Palmer.
“We’ve got a great young group of players,” Helle said. “They play hard and know how to do their job.”
Karina Moore led Norfolk State (0-2) with 12 kills and a .455 hitting percentage. Solange Honore had three kills and 10 blocks, and Yolanda Roberts and Abaina Farrell each had 11 digs.
The Terriers will take on host Maryland-Eastern Shore in their final match of the UMES Kick-Off Classic at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Maryland-Eastern Short 3, Wofford 1
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. -- The Wofford Terrier volleyball team finished 2-1 in the UMES Kick-Off Classic in Princess Anne, Md., Saturday evening after losing to host team and tournament winner Maryland-Eastern Shore 3-1 (30-26, 27-30, 30-20, 31-29).
“We were happy with our performance in the tournament,” said head coach Corey Helle. “Getting two wins this weekend was a great start to the season.”
Sophomore Liz Sheets and freshmen Sarah Twitty and Sarah Palmer each had double digit kills. Sheets was successful on 14 of 36 attacking attempts and assisted on blocking four of the Lady Hawks’ attacks. Twitty scored on 15 of her 54 attack attempts while Palmer connected 10 of her 33 attempts. Twitty led the squad with 34 kills in the tournament.
Palmer also added 15 digs while senior Shana Glenn had 13, junior Lisa Lindemenn had 12 and freshman Joanna Suddath had 19. Suddath has already proven herself to be an asset to the team as she led the Terriers with 38 digs and 73 set assists in the tournament.
“We had a well-balanced effort,” Helle said. “Everyone played well.”
Wofford outhit the Lady Hawks behind a .265 showing in the second game. But Maryland-Eastern Shore’s defense carried the team to victory as it garnered 99 digs and six-and-a-half blocks. Four Maryland-Eastern Shore (3-0) players posted double digit blocks.
Caylin Woodward led the Lady Hawks’ assault with a team-high 19 kills on 51 attempts. She added 23 digs defensively. Holiday Eller contributed 14 kills among her 47 attempts and to go along with 17 digs and three assisted blocks.
“We’ll now take some time off to allow everyone to get acclimated to the start of school next week (Sept. 4),” Helle said. “Hopefully we’ll return with the same swagger in our next match.”
The next Wofford (2-1) volleyball match will be the home opener against Winston-Salem State Sept. 7 at 6 p.m. in the Benjamin Johnson Arena.
Furman 3, East Carolina 1
Greenville, N.C. -- Chibuzo Aguocha recorded a double-double, and Nicole Palazzo added 17 kills as Furman defeated East Carolina 3-1 (30-17, 30-22, 23-30, 30-21) on Saturday at the ECU Invitational.
Aguocha tallied 24 kills and added 14 digs for Furman (1-1) to record her 11th career double-double. Palazzo hit .500 (17-1-32) for the match, and contributed three total blocks (two solo).
Freshman Stephanie Smith added 10 defensive saves, and junior Courtney Stewardson recorded 60 assists for the Paladins.
Mignon Dubenion had 14 kills, and Kelley Wernert added 12 winners for ECU (1-1).
Furman evens its record at 1-1 on the season. The Paladins return to action on Saturday afternoon as Furman faces William and Mary at 4 p.m.
Furman 3, William & Mary 0
Greenville, N.C. -- Chibuzo Aguocha recorded a game-high 17 kills as the Furman volleyball team swept William and Mary 3-0 (30-25, 30-25, 30-19) in the Paladins’ final match at the East Carolina University Invitational.
Aguocha, a junior from Houston, Texas, notched 17 kills and six errors in
35 total attempts and added nine digs. Nicole Palazzo contributed eight kills and a .467 hitting percentage (8-1-15).
Stephanie Smith recorded a career-high 18 digs, and three other Paladins reached double-digits in defensive saves as Courtney Stewardson had 11 digs, and Whitney Purser and Ally Hock each added 10 digs.
William and Mary (0-3) was led by Lindsey Pflugner with 12 kills and 13 digs. Jill Nowadly also added 13 defensive saves.
Furman improves to 2-1 on the season with the win. The Paladins return to action on Friday as they travel to face Utah Valley State and Central Florida at the UCF Classic.
Youth-Laden Catamount Volleyball Drops Final Two Matches at Magnolia Invitational
Western returns to action this Friday at the Clemson Big Orange Bash
Southeast Missouri Stat 3, Western Carolina 0
Pittsburgh 3, Western Carolina 0
Oxford, Miss. ? Searching for its first win of 2006, the Western Carolina Catamount volleyball team dropped two matches on Saturday to conclude play in the Magnolia Invitational hosted by Ole Miss. Western (0-4) fell in straight sets to both Southeast Missouri State (SEMO) and Pittsburgh, 3-0, at the Gillom Sports Complex.
For the tournament, WCU went winless, falling to Arkansas-Little Rock (UALR) and Ole Miss on Friday to open the season.
“Today’s scores were really not indicative of the way we played,” said second-year head coach, Stephanie Dragan. “I thought we played as a team, competed and our freshmen gained some valuable experience. In the morning match with SEMO, I did not feel as if we played our best. But I was proud of the way we rebounded against Pitt this afternoon ? they are a really good team with a big, solid block. We played hard, but just could not get around their block at the net.”
Saturday morning, Western fell to the SEMO Redhawks, 3-0 (30-21, 30-23, 30-20). The Catamounts were led by senior Meredith Harmon with eight kills, while classmate Meghan Boyle and freshman Brittny Johnson each tallied six kills apiece. Boyle added 11 digs while Johnson led with three total blocks including two solo. Freshman Katie Hennessey dished out 20 assists, with freshman Liz Rondone leading the team with 18 digs.
Junior Brenna Schlader tallied a match-high 13 kills and four blocks as SEMO captured its first win of the season.
In the final match of the opening weekend, Western was out-blocked 14-to-3 by the Pitt Panthers en route to the 3-0 (30-20, 30-15, 30-15) loss. Senior Heather Koontz recorded a team-high eight kills with Johnson finishing with six kills and three blocks. Hennessey passed out 16 assists while Rondone posted a career-high 20 digs to lead the Catamounts.
Western continues its early-season tournament appearances next weekend, Sept. 1-2, visiting Clemson, S.C., for the Big Orange Bash. The Catamounts open play against the host Tigers on Friday at 11:30 am, and will also face the Charlotte 49ers at 4:30 pm. On Saturday, Western battles SEC-foe, South Carolina, at 11:30 am, and concludes tournament play at 4:30 pm against Tennessee State.
Middle Tennessee State 3, Appalachian State 0
BOONE, N.C. ? The Appalachian State University volleyball team suffered its first loss of the season, falling to Middle Tennessee, 3-0 (30-22, 30-16, 30-16), Saturday in the championship match of the Mast General Store Appalachian Classic hosted by ASU at the Holmes Center.
With the loss the Mountaineers fall to 2-1 on the season, while placing second in the tournament with a 2-1 record. The Blue Raiders remain perfect on the season at 3-0, while taking home the tournament championship trophy.
Junior Brittany Zahn (Charlotte, N.C.) led ASU in both the dig and kill categories, recording eight and 11, respectively. She finished with a hitting percentage of .320, on her way to earning all-tournament honors. Zahn finished the tournament with 38 overall kills in nine games, averaging 4.22 kills and 2.00 digs per game.
Also earning all-tournament honors for ASU was junior setter Lorelle Rau (Oakland Park, Fla.). Rau compiled 31 assists and seven digs in the loss. Over the weekend Rau amassed 114 assists, averaging 11.40 a game.
Tournament MVP Ashley Adams led the Blue Raider hitting corps with 14 kills and no errors on her way to a .737 attack percentage. The sophomore led the tournament field with 4.90 kills per game in 10 games played.
Junior libero Alicia Lemau’u dug her way onto the all-tournament team with 16 digs in the win. She led the field with 4.50 digs per game over the weekend. MTSU’s final member of the all-tournament was Quanshell Scott who recorded 13 kills in the win.
MTSU Senior setter Megan Sumrell dished out 46 assists in the match. Over the tournament, Sumrell led the field with a 13.00 assist per game average.
ASU head coach Chad Callihan looks for h is 100th career win as the Mountaineers continue tournament play as they head to Jacksonville, Fla. to compete in the UNF Labor Day Classic hosted by the University of North Florida. Aside from UNF, ASU will also face Idaho State and Murray State. The Apps kick off competition Friday, Sept. 1 against North Florida at 7:30 p.m.