Furman 3, Elon 1
GREENVILLE, S.C. ? Led by senior Kerry Wooten and senior Chibuzo Aguocha’s record-breaking performances and solid contributions from the rest of the team, the Paladins defeated the Phoenix 4-1 in SoCon volleyball action.
With 7 block assists, senior middle blocker Wooten climbed to the top of the Paladins’ career record books for block assists with 368 total block assists. She also moved up to second-place in the all-time list for total blocks, with 422 in her career.
Senior outside hitter Aguocha also had a record-setting night. With 15 kills in the match, Aguocha passed the 1,500 career kills mark, putting her at third in the Furman all-time record books.
Before their record-setting performances, however, the Paladins started off slowly in game one, allowing the Phoenix to come back from a 11-20 deficit to take the game 31-29.
The Paladins regrouped in game two, taking an early 6-0 lead, and leading by as much as 11 points en route to a 30-21 win, led by Aguocha’s 5 kills and two service aces.
Furman again took an early lead in game three, jumping out to 7-0 and holding on to the lead for the entirety of the game, winning by a score of 30-15. Junior Alison West contributed 8 kills and two service aces in the third game alone.
In game four, despite an early Furman lead, the Phoenix managed to narrow the score to 23-25. However, the Paladins finished the game and match
30-23 behind freshman middle blocker Kelley Samples’ three block assists.
Elon’s offense was led by senior outside hitter Britany Westphal, who recorded 12 kills in the match. Senior Emily Lucci added 10, and libero Kelley Blakewood led the defense with 13 digs.
The Paladins’ win was helped by solid performances from many players.
Junior West led the offense with 17 kills, with Aguocha and middle blocker Nicole Palazzo contributing 15 kills each. Palazzo also recorded a .583 hitting percentage, with just one error in all four games.
Wooten led the Paladins’ net defense with 7 total blocks, while West added 6. The Paladins recorded 16 total team blocks. Freshman libero Brooke Ellison led the floor defense with 16 digs, while Aguocha and West each contributed 12 defensive saves.
The Paladins recorded 17 service aces as a team, with West and junior defensive specialist Pamela Gehrke leading the team with 5 each, senior setter Courtney Stewardson adding 4, and Aguocha notching 3 aces.
With the win, the Paladins improve to 16-6 overall and 9-3 in the SoCon, while Elon falls to 14-13 overall and 8-5 in league play. Furman takes the court again on Saturday in a noon match against rival UNC Greensboro.
Appalachian State 3, The Citadel 0
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Carla Durham led the way with 18 kills and a .624 hitting percentage as the Appalachian State volleyball team won its eighth straight match, a 3-0 sweep at The Citadel. The eight-match winning streak matches the team's longest from 2006.
Brittany Zahn paced the team with six kills in game one, as the team hit .406 and won 30-21. An early four-point run gave Appalachian a 12-6 lead, which soon expanded to 19-10. Durham had four kills and three of her four blocks in the opening set to pace ASU.
Durham exploded for 10 kills on 11 attempts for a .909 hitting percentage in the second set. As a whole, the Apps converted 20 kills with just one error for a .576 hitting percentage, compared to .143 for The Citadel. Heather Kale posted three of her 11 digs in the game, as ASU won 30-15.
The Citadel responded with a rousing effort in the final game. The home team led by as many as three points early on, before the Mountaineers rallied to take a four-point lead at 17-13. The Citadel fought back from two match points after a 28-28 tie, and put ASU on the ropes with a 32-31 advantage. The comeback was quelled by a three-point rally, as Charissa Clearman and Jordan Jesberg each had kills. The Mountaineers earned the sweep with a 34-32 win. Clearman finished the contest with seven assists.
Senior Dianna Thomas posted eight kills and now stands just ten kills short of the career kills record at ASU. Thomas led the team with 16 digs. Cassie Engelgau served up four of the team's nine aces in the match. The Apps hit .336 for the match.
The Mountaineers (14-12, 10-3) face off against first-place College of Charleston Saturday at 2 p.m.