Appalachian State 3, East Tennessee State 0
BOONE, N.C. ? Dianna Thomas pounded out 11 kills and a .368 hitting percentage, while Heather Kale collected ten digs as the Appalachian State volleyball team rolled past local rival East Tennessee State, 30-17, 30-28, and 30-18. It was the fourth straight win for the Mountaineers, who now stand at 10-12 on the season.
Game one opened with solid defense from ASU, as Brittany Zahn and Caroline Sedon collaborated for a pair of early blocks. The stuffs gave Appalachian a 5-3 advantage before both Sedon and Zahn connected on consecutive kills to run the lead to 7-3. Zahn finished the match with four blocks and 15 kills, while Sedon finished as the team leader with five of the squad’s 12 blocks in the match. Sedon had six kills in ten attempts as well. The Apps would not look back in the opening set, as they closed out the game with an 8-3 run to finish 30-17.
Strong serving from Cassie Engelgau helped ASU to a 3-0 lead in the second game, but ETSU remained close and eventually took the lead at 15-14. Engelgau finished with seven digs on the night. The Lady Bucs never led by more than two points in the game, as the Apps kept it close with the help of ten kills from Zahn. Reigning Southern Conference Player of the Week Carla Durham added a pair of blocks and four of her 11 kills in the game, as Appalachian battled back from a 28-26 deficit. ASU scored the final four points of the match, punctuated by a kill from Kale for the dramatic 30-28 win.
Game three opened with an impressive nine-point run from the home team, as ASU took a 10-3 lead. The Mountaineers needed just 13 kills in the game for the win, as ETSU was held to a -.059 hitting percentage in the final set. Appalachian outhit the opposition .294 to .055 for the match.
Lorelle Rau and Lauren Swecker each recorded four kills in the match, and Rau paced the team with 39 assists. Charissa Clearman handled three digs and played in all three games of the match. ASU has won four straight for the first time since late October a year ago. The Mountaineers are now 47-16 against ETSU.
The team returns to action this weekend. ASU will host Western Carolina on Friday at 7 p.m., and Chattanooga on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the Holmes Center.