Furman 3, Chattanooga 1
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. ? Junior Nikki Palazzo led the Paladins with 24 kills in a 3-1 victory over Chattanooga.
In game one, the two teams kept the score close, until Furman pulled away in the second half to take the game 30-22, finishing on three kills from Palazzo and one service ace each from Courtney Stewardson and Chibuzo Aguocha.
The second game saw Chattanooga take an early 11-6 lead, but the Paladins fought back to tie the score at 15 and keep the lead for the rest of the game, finishing with a score of 30-24.
Chattanooga controlled much of game three, including scoring their biggest lead of the match, at 15-10. The Paladins responded to take a 2-point lead, but were unable to hold on as Chattanooga scored four straight points to take the third game 31-29.
The Paladins recovered in game four, and finished the match with a final score of 30-26.
The Mocs were led by outside hitter Leslee Ball, who scored 16 kills, while libero Lara Newberry paced the defense with 31 digs.
Furman was led by Palazzo’s 24 kills and .512 attack percentage, while senior Kerry Wooten added 19 kills and 7 total blocks. Three Paladins scored double-doubles, with junior Alison West notching 19 kills and 12 digs, senior Chibuzo Aguocha scoring 13 kills and 16 digs, and senior Courtney Stewardson adding 69 assists and 15 digs. Freshman libero Brooke Ellison led the defense with 26 digs.
With the win, the Paladins improve to 19-6 overall and 12-3 in the conference while Chattanooga falls to 16-12 and 11-4 in the league.
The Paladins embark on their last regular season road trip with a match at Western Carolina on Tuesday. Furman will finish out the season with home stands against The Citadel and College of Charleston.
Appalachian State 3, Elon 1
BOONE, N.C. - Despite a game one loss, the Mountaineers rallied to defeat Elon in four games and move to 12-3 in the Southern Conference and 16-12 overall. Brittany Zahn tallied 28 kills, as the team extended its winning streak to ten games with the 26-30, 30-24, 30-22, 30-17 victory.
The Mountaineers hit just .068 in the opening set, as an early four-point lead evaporated into a 26-26 tie. The Elon Phoenix finished off its five-point run to close out the game with a 30-26 win. Libero Heather Kale picked up two of her team-leading six aces in the game, and finished the match with 17 kills as well. Zahn accounted for the team’s other two aces.
ASU got back on track in game two, due in part to Zahn’s seven kills. The Apps stuffed two of their nine blocks in the second, and hit a match-best .447. Carla Durham posted five of her 13 kills in the game, as the squad never trailed following a 5-0 run to open the match. Durham finished the evening with three blocks and a dig. Elon pulled within 11-9 but never regained momentum. Dianna Thomas put down seven kills in eight attempts in the game to help the team to a comfortable lead and an eventual 30-24 final score. Thomas, the SoCon Student-Athlete of the Week, posted 15 kills, nine digs, and four blocks, as the Mountaineers got revenge for their last loss, which took place at Elon nearly a month ago.
With 18 kills and just four errors in game three, the Mountaineers took control of the match. Opening a 5-1 lead, ASU fought off Emily Lucci and the Phoenix for the 30-22 triumph. Becca Norris picked up three of her team-high six blocks in the set, and finished the night with five kills and a pair of digs. Six players accounted for all 69 of Appalachian’s kills, as Lorelle Rau added two and Lauren Swecker converted six. Rau finished the evening with 52 assists and three digs.
Game four belonged to ASU as well, as the team hit over .400 for the third consecutive game and led by as many as 13 points in the deciding set. Strong back row play from Cassie Engelgau and aggressive serving on the part of Charissa Clearman allowed the Mountaineers to close out the match with a 30-17 win.
ASU is back in action on Saturday, with a 2 p.m. matchup with the 8-6 UNC Greensboro Spartans.
College of Charleston 3, Georgia Southern 0
The College of Charleston volleyball team held Georgia Southern to just a .085 hitting percentage as the Cougars defeated the Eagles 3-0 (30-19, 30-13, 30-24) in action this evening in Statesboro, Ga..
With the win, the Cougars improve to 20-7 overall and 14-2 in Southern Conference play. Georgia Southern falls to 9-18 overall and 6-9 in the leauge.
“I am very happy with the way the team came out tonight," said Head Coach Jason Kepner. "We served extremely tough and played very aggressively on defense. Our passing kept us in system for most of the night which allowed Lindsey [Kane] to get our hitter one-on-one. Overall it was a very good three games of volleyball as we wind down to the end of the conference schedule.”
Charleston jumped out to an early 11-4 lead after scoring seven consecutive points. Georgia Southern narrowed the Cougars' lead to three points after scoring three unanswered points to being the game to 15-13. After a Georgia Southern timeout, Charleston scored seven of the final 11 points to take game one 30-19.
The Cougars scored 11 of the first 14 points in game two to force the Eagles to call an early timeout. An attack error by GSU’s Christy Dowd capped off a 10-point Charleston run that put the game out of reach. The Cougars scored their final point off a kill by Annie Uthe to take the game 30-13.
The teams battled in game three before Charleston clinched the game 30-24. Charleston jumped out to an early 12-5 lead before GSU scored five consecutive points to narrow the lead to three at 13-10. Four consecutive Cougar points forced an Eagle timeout. Charleston scored six of the final 11 points to clinch the game and the match.
Tiffany Blum led the team with 13 kills for a .478 attack percentage while recording seven blocks to lead the defense. Emily Sawin and Uthe earned nine kills each. Cole Dawley and Deanna Patrick notched eight kills a piece, with Kane and Ginny Phillips combined for six kills. Dawley earned five blocks, while three Cougars combined for four blocks.
Gorana Bacic led the Eagles with 15 kills, while Sarah Gildersleeve had six. Bailey Coleman and Dowd earned five a piece. Defensively, Gildersleeve led the team with three blocks. Four Eagles recorded at least one block.
Charleston returns to action Friday, Nov. 9 when it faces Wofford in a 6 p.m. match. The team will close out the regular season Saturday, Nov. 10 at Furman for a 2 p.m. start time