Furman 0, Purdue 3
Furman 3, Clemson 2
Furman 3, Florida A&M 2
GREENVILLE, S.C. ? Despite a close showing in the first game, the Furman Lady Paladins fell to Purdue in 3 games in the opening match of Clemson’s Big Orange Bash.
The Boilermakers led during the majority of game one and, despite several tied scores late in the game, were able to hold on to win by a score of 30-28, helped by Danita Merlau’s seven kills and .312 hitting percentage.
Purdue jumped to an early 9-2 lead in game two, and took the game 30-19, helped by Furman’s numerous attack errors. The Boilermakers also controlled game three, winning by a score of 30-9, led by Stephanie Lynch’s five kills, and helped by the fact that Furman failed to post a hitting percentage above zero.
Furman’s offense was led by junior Alison West, who posted 11 kills for the match. Junior libero Pamela Gehrke led the defense with 15 saves, while senior Chibuzo Aguocha added 10 digs to the losing effort.
GREENVILLE, S.C. ? The Furman Lady Paladins posted a big 3-2 win over Clemson in the Big Orange Bash this morning, giving the Tigers their first loss of the 2007 season.
In a first game that featured 11 ties and five lead changes, the Lady Paladins overcame an early 6-12 deficit to win 33-31.
Furman slipped in game two, allowing Clemson to take a 20-10 lead, and ultimately losing the game by a score of 20-30.
The Paladins rallied in game three, led by senior Chibuzo Aguocha’s 6 kills, senior Courtney Stewardson’s 13 assists, and a team total of nine blocks. The Paladins led the entire game, and out-hit the Tigers with a team hitting percentage of .303 to Clemson’s .167.
Game four was another close one, with 15 ties and 4 lead changes, but resulted in a 23-30 loss for Furman. Sophomore Stephanie Smith recorded 11 digs, half of the team’s total for game four, but the Paladins were unable to match the Tigers’ .318 hitting percentage.
Clemson started the fifth game quickly, tallying five points to the Paladins’ one. However, Furman quickly tied the score, led by a trio of kills from junior Alison West. West went on to post seven kills in game five, leading the Paladins to a 15-12 win for the match.
“Obviously we’re excited about the win, but I’m more excited for the girls because they were able to put together a complete match,” commented head coach Michelle Young. “Alison West really stepped up for us today, and helped the team to one of the biggest wins in our program’s history.”
Three Furman players posted double-digit kills in the match, with West leading the way, racking up 22 kills and 16 digs. Aguocha was close behind with 17 kills and 13 defensive saves, and sophomore middle blocker Emily Harby added 10. Setter Stewardson ran a successful offense, posting 59 assists in the process, and adding four aces. Libero Smith led the defense with 33 saves, while junior Pamela Gehrke contributed 12.
Clemson was led by middle blocker Danielle Hepburn, who posted 19 kills and three blocks. Libero Didem Ege led the defense with 32 digs, and Kelsey Murphy added 19 defensive saves to the losing effort.
GREENVILLE, S.C. - The Furman volleyball team played well under pressure again today, defeating the Rattlers of FAMU 3-2.
The Paladins won game one handily by a score of 30-18, helped by middle blocker Nicole Palazzo's four kills and .667 hitting percentage. The team struggled in game two, but kept the score close, losing 26-30. Game three was a back and forth affair, and the Paladins overcame a 17-24 deficit late in the game to win 24-30, helped by a team total of eight blocks.
Furman slipped again in game four, staging a comeback late in the game, but FAMU finished the game with a score of 30-28. Although the Rattlers led for most of game five, Furman staged a late comeback to take the game 15-12.
Furman was led by junior Palazzo, who tallied 24 kills and only six errors for an attack percentage of .400. Senior Kerry Wooten added 7 block assists, 12 kills and a .364 hitting percentage to the successful effort. Junior Alison West contributed 14 kills and 18 digs, and libero Stephanie Smith added 19 defensive saves. Senior Courtney Stewardson notched 63 assists and eight block assists to help the Paladins to the win. Furman's Palazzo and West were both named to the all-tournament team. West finished the weekend with 47 kills and 38 digs, while Palazzo racked up 39 kills and 13 block assists.
Wofford 0, Michigan State 3
Wofford 0, Boston College 3
Wofford 0, Harvard 3
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. ? Wofford opened play Friday morning with a defeat in its first match of the Harvard Invitational against Michigan State. The Spartans won games one and two by identical scores before the Terriers played a more competitive game three (30-13, 30-13, 30-19) in Lavietes Pavilion in Cambridge, Mass.
For the first time in the match Wofford (3-3) had the lead claiming the first two points in game three. The Terriers held the lead until Michigan State (4-3) rallied for three straight points to tie the score at 11. The Spartans would then take the lead and never looked back eventually earning the game three victory.
Michigan State sophomore Vanessa King paced the match with a .833 hitting percentage from five kills, no errors and six total attacks. Senior Katie Johnson led the team in total attacks with 16. Senior Ashley Schatzle followed close behind King and Johnson with a performance of 10 kills, zero errors and 15 total attacks for a hitting percentage of .667. Freshman setter Lauren O’Reilly completed the contest with a match high 33 assists. Two Spartans led the squad with five digs apiece, seniors Jessica Hohl and Miken Trogdon.
Wofford sophomore setter Joanna Suddath paced the team with a .556 hitting percentage from six kills, one error and nine total attacks. Suddath also finished with a team high 13 assists. Sophomore Brittany Thompson led the match in total attacks with 23. Junior Carolyn Rivers registered 10 digs to lead the squad.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. ? The Wofford volleyball team fell Friday afternoon to Boston College 3-0, in match two of the Harvard Invitational (30-24, 30-19, 30-24).Eagles junior Brittany Pierpont led the match with a .667 hitting percentage, a result of four kills, zero errors and six total attacks. Pierpont also paced the match with 38 assists. Senior Kelsey Johnson ended with an impressive performance of 15 kills and 31 total attacks. Senior Kristen Whalley led Boston College (5-4) in digs with seven.
Wofford (3-4) freshman Stacy Byrd led the team with a .500 hitting percentage from three kills, zero errors and six total attacks. Sophomore Brittany Thompson paced the team in total attacks with 27 and eight digs. Sophomore setter Joanna Suddath finished the match collecting a team high 25 assists.
CAMBRIGDE, Mass. ? The Wofford volleyball team fell Saturday morning to host Harvard, 3-0, at the Harvard Invitational in Cambridge, Mass. Harvard won game one while the Terriers claimed game two, before the Crimson came back and captured games three and four (30-22, 25-30, 30-16, 30-18).
Harvard (2-0) junior Laura Mays registered a match high .500 hitting percentage and was second on the team with 15 assists. Other performances keying the victory were junior Kathryn McKinley’s 17 kills and 35 total attacks for a .429 hitting percentage, and senior Laura Mahon’s 13 kills and 39 total attacks. Sophomore Lily Durwood led the team with 36 assists, while classmate Katherine Kocurek finished with a match high 27 digs.
Wofford (3-5) junior Liz Sheets and sophomore Shanna Hughes led the team collecting nine kills and 28 total attacks apiece. Sophomore Joanna Suddath was the match leader with 42 assists. Sophomore Sarah Palmer collected a team high 18 digs on the defensive end.
Western Carolina 0, Georgia Tech 3
Western Carolina 0, Georgia 3
Western Carolina 0, Arizona 3
Western Carolina 0, Kentucky 3
ATLANTA, Ga. ? Western Carolina volleyball (3-5) dropped both matches Friday in the first day of action at the Regency Suites/Georgia Tech Classic held at O’Keefe Gym. The Catamounts fell to host Georgia Tech 3-0 (30-18, 30-17, 30-16) and Georgia 3-0 (30-25, 30-25, 30-23).
Western Carolina volleyball enjoyed an early lead in game one against host Georgia Tech but couldn’t maintain the momentum throughout the match. The Catamounts were plagued by 11 service errors, most coming at a time when Western Carolina was attempting a rally.
In game one, Western Carolina had an early 3-1 lead and tied the game three times before Georgia Tech pulled away. In the ensuing final two games, Western Carolina again enjoyed an early lead over Georgia Tech, but the Yellow Jackets pulled out the games in the end.
Senior Meredith Harmon was perfect in the match with 10 kills on 20 attacks and didn’t commit an error for a .500 attack percentage. She also had one service ace and four digs.
“Meredith did a phenomenal job,” Dragan said. “She faced two very good middles from Georgia Tech and played the way a senior should.”
Sophomores Liz Rondone and Katie Hennessey also had productive matches. Rondone had 18 digs and Hennessey dished out 21 set assists.
The Catamounts played Georgia in the second match of the day. In total, there were 18 ties in the match and seven lead changes. After struggling with service errors in the match against Georgia Tech, Western Carolina had just five against the Bulldogs and also had five service aces.
In game one, Western Carolina built a three-point lead (16-13) but a pair of attack errors by Catamount players and a Bulldog kill tied the game. Georgia then went on an 8-3 run to help put the game out of reach.
It was the tale of the day as Western Carolina made an early run at Georgia in games two and three but the Bulldogs went on a solid scoring streak to pull ahead.
Catamount setter Hennessey recorded a double-double in the match with 10 kills and 24 assists. Libero Rondone had 14 digs.
ATLANTA, Ga. - Western Carolina volleyball (3-7) may have dropped both its matches Saturday in the final day of the Regency Suites/Georgia Tech Classic held in O'Keefe Gym, but the Catamounts carried away valuable experience. The Catamounts lost to Kentucky 3-0 (30-25, 30-18, 30-17) and Arizona 3-0 (30-17, 30-19, 30-24).
"I am very proud of the play of the team, especially in the final day of the tournament," said Head Coach Stephanie Dragan. "We had a great effort against Arizona and got some quality play from our freshmen."
Against Arizona, Western Carolina got some quality play out of freshman Jelena Jakovjevic who led the Catamounts with eight kills and four service aces. The club also got a spark when freshman LaTonia Cunninghman came off the bench in game three and invigorated the club with four kills. Sophomore Katie Hennessey had 27 assists in the match. "I was really excited to see the way LaTonia played when I put her in the third game," Dragan said. "She really sparked the team."
Earlier in the day, Western Carolina suffered a loss to Kentucky. The Catamounts were led by senior Meredith Harmon who had 12 kills and recorded a .310 attack percentage. Sophomore Liz Rondone recorded 13 digs in the match.
UNC Greensboro 3, Morgan State 2
UNC Greensboro 2, Coastal Carolina 3
UNC Greensboro 2, Charlotte 3
CHARLOTTE, NC ?The UNC Greensboro volleyball team snapped its five-game skid with a 3-2 win over Morgan State in opening round action at the Charlotte 49ers Invitational on Friday afternoon. The Spartans won the match by scores of 28-30, 28-30, 30-28, 30-28,6-14.
UNCG (5-5) was led by sophomore outside hitter Branagan Fuller, who tallied a team-high 22 kills and set a new career-high with a team-leading 34 digs.
Setter Lisa Fawell also had a good game and tallied a match-high 71 assists. Kaitlyn Nortz and Katherine Hart led UNCG with five blocks each.
Morgan State (0-5) was led by Esther Johnson and Ivanti Bush who each tallied 23 kills while also tallying 23 digs apiece. The Bears also tallied nine team blocks in the loss.
The Spartans came out of the gate slowly and found themselves in a battle with the Bears from the outset of game one. UNCG found themselves down 3-0 early before getting back in the game behind several Morgan State errors and timely kills from Emily Lindborg and Fuller. In a game that featured 10 ties, UNCG kept things close but a late 3-2 run from Morgan State gave the Bears game one, 30-28.
In game two UNCG took the 3-0 lead early but the Bears would come back and take a 15-11 lead midway through the game. The Spartans wouldn’t get any closer as Morgan State would take a 2-0 match lead with a 30-28 win in game two.
After the intermission UNCG went would get back on track. The Spartans ran out to a 14-8 lead and pushed their lead to 24-16 before the Bears went on a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 24-20 but that was as close as it would get as the Spartans claimed the 30-28 win and cut the lead to 2-1.
The fourth game featured another tight match with neither team gaining an advantage of more the four points through the first 20 points played. The Bears went on the attack and took a 24-19 lead before kills from Hart and Lindborg put UNCG in front 26-25. The Spartans wouldn’t relinquish the lead and held on for the 30-28 lead.
In the decisive fifth game, which featured 10 lead changes, it was tight from the first serve. UNCG took a 13-12 lead but the Bears rebounded with a kill from Johnson before Hart regained the lead with a kill. The game ended with an attack error from Morgan State and a kill from Nortz to give the Spartans the match.
CHARLOTTE, NC ?The UNC Greensboro volleyball team dropped two five-game matches to conclude action at the Charlotte 49er Invitational on Saturday.The Spartans fell 3-2 to both Coastal Carolina and tournament host Charlotte. Kaitlyn Nortz was named to the All-Tournament team for her efforts throughout the weekend.
Branagan Fuller and Kaitlyn Nortz led the UNCG (5-7) on the offensive side of things. Fuller tallied a double-double against Coastal Carolina with 25 kills and 12 digs while Nortz tallied a team-high 16 kills against Charlotte. Catherine Hanners tallied 29 and 20 digs, respectively.
Against Coastal all five-games were close. Coastal took a 1-0 lead in the match after taking game one by a score of 31-29 but UNCG was able to take a
2-1 match lead with a 30-25 win in game two and a close 30-28 win in game three behind the timely hitting of Fuller.
The Chanticleers would mount a comeback in the fourth game and jumped out to a three-point lead midway through the game behind the hitting of Jill Hyhof and were able to even the match with a 30-24 win.
The fifth game featured several lead changes down the stretch but in the end miscues by the Spartans would give Coastal the game 15-13 and the match 3-2.
In the late game, Charlotte rolled out to an early 2-0 lead behind the heavy hitting of Cori Dayton who tallied 16 kills in the victory. UNCG was able to cut into the lead with a 30-23 win in game four. Caley Redden was able to come up with critical kills to give the Spartans the win. A 30-25 win in game four forced the decisive fifth game.
The score see-sawed back-and-fourth in the extra period but a late run by the Charlotte was too much for the Spartans to overcome as they dropped their second-consecutive five-game match.
Elon 1, McNeese State 3
Elon 0, Illinois-Chicago 3
Elon 0, North Dakota State 3
CHICAGO, Ill. ? The Phoenix volleyball team fell to 4-3 on the season Friday evening as the squad dropped the first match of the Illinois-Chicago Invitational 3-1 (30-22, 30-17, 28-30, 30-26) to the McNeese State Cowboys. MSU improves to 3-4 on the year.
In the first stanza, Mandy Wilson led the Phoenix with four kills. Elon posted a hitting percentage of just .158, while the Cowboys hit .265. Emily Lucci posted two blocks for the Phoenix. McNeese State’s Jennifer Cook recorded seven kills in game one to lead the Cowboys to a 30-22 win and a 1-0 advantage in the match.
Lucci’s six kills weren’t enough to pull out a Phoenix victory in the second frame, as MSU went up 2-0 in the match with a 30-17 win. Elon hit just .019 in the game, tallying 12 kills and 11 attack errors.
The Phoenix took game three 30-28 to cut the Cowboys lead in half 2-1. Elon posted 19 kills and a .250 team hitting percentage in the win.
Elon dropped the final game of the match 30-26. Lucci posted a double-double in the four-game set, recording 13 kills and 16 digs. Wilson also reached double-digits in kills (10), and Lauren Copenhagen tallied nine kills and 14 digs.
Copenhagen, Kelley Blakewood and Jessica Barrow each logged two service aces, while Stefanie Meyers had three blocks.
The Elon volleyball team fell to 4-5 on the season after suffering a loss 3-0 (30-23, 30-18, 30-18) to Illinois-Chicago on Saturday night. The Flames held Elon to a .073 attack percentage and forced the team to commit 12 errors in route to a 30-23 victory in game one. UIC continued to dominate on both sides of the net in game two. The Flames posted a .361 clip and tabbed 18 kills to take a 2-0 advantage over Elon (30-18). The Flames completed the sweep and captured the invitational championship with a 30-18 victory in game three. Emily Lucci led the squad with eight digs and eight kills, while also recording two block assists for Elon. Natalie Moore tallied 22 assists.For UIC, Katerina Hanackova recorded a double-double with 13 kills and 11 digs.
The Elon volleyball team dropped its second match of the weekend Saturday afternoon, falling 3-0 (30-23, 30-23, 30-18) to North Dakota State. Game one saw the Phoenix tally just 13 team kills to the Bison’s 21. Mandy Wilson posted a team-leading five kills (.625) and combined for a block assist with Lauren Copenhagen, but NDSU’s .405 team hitting percentage was too much for Elon as the Bison took game one 30-23.Britany Westphal had four kills in the second frame, but the Phoenix could not muster up enough offense to overcome the Bison. Copenhagen and Sarah Schermerhorn combined for a block assist and Kelley Blakewood recorded a service ace for Elon. The lead went back and forth, but eventually NDSU won game two 30-23 to take a 2-0 advantage in the match.The Bison defense forced offensive errors for Elon in the final game of the three-game set.
The Phoenix managed just seven team kills, with eight attack errors for a -.029 hitting percentage, as Elon fell 30-18 in game three.Westphal and Emily Lucci each posted seven kills for the Phoenix, while Schermerhorn added six kills and three block assists. Natalie Moore provided 26 assists in the loss.
Chattanooga 2, Tennessee Tech 3
Chattanooga 3, UNC Asheville 0
Chattanooga 0, Missouri State 3
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. ? Freshman Leah Meffert and sophomore Amanda Lindgren combined for 40 kills and 48 digs to lead Tennessee Tech (4-4) to a marathon 3-2 victory over Chattanooga (1-4) on the opening night of the Country Inns & Suites Challenge at Maclellan Gym in Chattanooga, Tenn. The win is TTU’s third consecutive over the Lady Mocs.
From the very beginning the two teams battled, with a total of eight lead changes and seven ties in the first game. With the score tied at 29-29, the Golden Eagles notched a Game 1 victory with back-to-back kills from Meffert to win the game 31-29 and go up 1-0 in the match. The Lady Mocs came right back in Game 2, jumping out to leads of 9-3 and 14-6 before rolling to a 30-20 victory to knot the match at 1-1.
Chattanooga again jumped out to a sizable lead in the third game, compiling a 17-10 advantage. At that point, though, the Golden Eagles came alive, recording 12 straight points to pull ahead 22-17 and outscored UTC with an overall run of 20-4 to secure a 30-21 win and pull ahead 2-1 in the match.
After quick leads of 5-1 and 7-2 for the Lady Mocs at the start of the fourth game, Tennessee Tech rallied to pull even at 12-12 and stayed close the rest of the game. Chattanooga built leads of 24-21 and 27-23 before TTU drew to within two points at 27-25.
That would be as close as they would get as UTC quickly notched the next three points, with the final two coming on back-to-back kills by senior Leslee Ball (Sycamore, Ill.) and freshman Aurore Kullak (Beloeil, Belgium), to take the fourth game, 30-25, and pull even at 2-2 in the match.
The deciding fifth game saw the two teams stay within two points of each other for nearly the entire game. Midway through the Golden Eagles led 9-7 before the Lady Mocs tied the score three times, the last at 12-12. Back-to-back kills by Lindgren paved the way for TTU as they jumped back ahead 14-12 and closed out the game and the match with a 15-12 victory.
Tennessee Tech was led by Meffert and Lindgren with 18 kills and 30 digs and 22 kills and 18 digs respectively. Junior setter Kappy Lang registered 51 assists to go along with 19 digs while sophomore outside hitter Katie Kenline posted 44 digs.
For Chattanooga, seniors Leslee Ball and Bethany Herndon (Richmond, Texas) led the way, with Ball posting 18 kills, 19 digs and a hitting percentage of .447 and Herndon notching a match-high 57 assists to go along with 18 digs. Fellow seniors Jamie Engel (Troy, Ill.) and Kelsey Amundson (Houston, Texas) added 11 kills and 20 digs and eight kills and 22 digs, respectively. Junior libero Lara Newberry (Chattanooga, Tenn.) posted a team-high 42 digs and senior Julianna Martinez (Austin, Texas) added 17 kills while senior Sarah Bass finished with 12 on the evening.
Chattanooga, Tenn. ? The Chattanooga Lady Mocs wrapped up action at the Country Inns and Suites Challenge on Saturday afternoon as they split a pair of matches with UNC Asheville and Missouri State University. UTC swept UNCA 3-0 before falling to the Bears of MSU in the tournament finale by the same score.
Chattanooga (2-5) opened their second day action by jumping out to a 10-5 advantage over UNC Asheville (1-8) before the Bulldogs rallied to tie the score at 14-14 in Game 1. From that point, the score was tied six times and the lead changed hands five times as the two teams would be separated by no more than two points until UTC pulled ahead 29-26. Following back-to-back points by UNCA, the Lady Mocs’ Julianna Martinez (Austin, Texas) put the game away with a kill for the 30-28 victory and 1-0 match advantage.
In Game 2, the Lady Mocs jumped out to leads of 8-3 and 18-11, before the Bulldogs rallied to within 22-19. That would be as close as they would get as Chattanooga maintained at least a four-point lead to wrap up the 30-24 victory.
Seeking their first sweep of the young season, UTC left nothing to chance in the third game as they quickly powered out to a 17-9 lead behind a 14-6 run and three kills from senior middle blocker Leslee Ball (Sycamore, Ill.). The Lady Mocs would maintain that lead and go on to win the game 30-17 and the match 3-0.
For the Bulldogs, freshman Rachel Guinane and sophomore Kaitlyn McDaniel splits the assists, recording 18 and 17 respectively while sophomore Alysha Greer led the team with 14 kills. Greer was joined by freshman Kelsey Benorden in double-digits with ten kills. Sophomore libero Raquel Miotto and sophomore defensive specialist Brooke Holliday led the team defensively with 16 and 15 digs, respectively.
Leading Chattanooga was Leslee Ball, who posted team-highs of 20 kills and a .447 hitting percentage, and senior setter Bethany Herndon (Richmond, Texas) who finished with a game-high 46 assists. Junior libero Lara Newberry (Chattanooga, Tenn.) led the team with 27 digs and senior Kelsey Amundson finished with 12 kills and 14 digs.
In the final match of the tournament, the Lady Mocs took on Missouri State University (8-2), a 2006 NCAA Tournament team with a 27-9 record a year ago. Chattanooga kept the game close, staying within three points until MSU pulled ahead 24-19. The Bears would extend their lead to six points and close out the game with a 30-24 victory.
Already up 1-0 in the match, Missouri State jumped out to a 14-6 lead in Game 2 and quickly extended that to 26-14. The Bears wrapped up the game with a 30-17 victory.
Chattanooga mounted a comeback in the third game as they recovered from a 10-5 deficit early on to pull to within two points five times before the Bears pulled away for good at 24 -18. MSU went on to win the game 30-25 and the match 3-0.
Sara Thomas and Jamie Adams, both All-Tournament selections for Missouri State, led the Bears with 13 kills each while Katelyn Panzau, the Tournament MVP, posted a team-high 35 assists. Cara Hackman led the team with 13 digs.
Ball led the Lady Mocs with a game-high 17 kills on her way to being UTC’s representative on the All-Tournament team. On the weekend, the 5-11 senior posted 55 kills. Herndon added 37 assists and Amundson led the team with 16 digs, followed by Newberry with 15.
Missouri State won the tournament with a perfect 9-0 mark, defeating UNC Asheville, Tennessee Tech and Chattanooga, 3-0 each.
The Citadel 0, Wright State 3
The Citadel 0, South Florida 3
Charleston, S.C. - Junior Rachel Sanders led the Bulldogs in scoring with 15 kills in The Citadel’s 3-0 loss to Wright State on Friday Aug. 7 in Dayton. The Bulldogs would be troubled by their attacking errors as well as a good blocking performance by Wright State. Offensive threats Jessica Woods and Samantha Connor of Wright State were key performers in the 19-30, 24-30 and 24-30 matches.
In game one, The Citadel would start off the match flat as the Wright State jumped out to a 16-6 lead. The Bulldogs would fight hard but could not ever get the upper hand as the Raiders took the match 30-19.
In the second game, neither team could gain the upper hand in the beginning as there were nine lead changes. With the score tied at 16 Wright State went on an 10-5 run leaving the score at 26-21. From there the Bulldogs would close within two points at 26-24 before the Raiders went on a 4-0 run to put the Dogs away 30-24.
In the final game, The Citadel jumped out to a 4-0 lead, but from there Wright State would come back to tie the game at 5. Their would be three more lead changes before the Raiders went on a 4-1 run making the score 14-10. The Bulldogs would come back with a 3-0 run of their own closing within one point of Wright State before they countered with a 6-2 run leaving the score at 20-15. After each team rallied 3 point runs a piece, Wright State would slowly put the Dogs away scoring seven of the last 13 points winning the game and the match 30-24.
Charleston, S.C. - Junior Rachel Sanders once again led the Bulldogs in scoring with 10 kills in The Citadel’s 3-0 loss to South Florida Saturday morning in Dayton. The Bulldogs continue to be their own worst enemy committing 27 attacking errors while recording a disappointing -.018 hitting percentage. A lot of the attack errors were linked to South Florida’s incredible blocking ability as they recorded 19 block assists and five solo.
In game one, The Citadel matched South Florida pretty well in the beginning as there were eight lead changes. With the score locked at 13, the Bulls went on a 7-0 run putting the score at 20-13. The Bulldogs would battle the Bulls back and forth, but could never gain any ground as South Florida took game one 30-21.
In the beginning of the second game South Florida came out with a pair of three point runs and a four point run leaving the Bulldogs seven points behind at 13-5. The teams then traded a couple of points before the Bulls went on a 6-0 run increasing their lead to 14. After another South Florida 3-1 run, the Bulldogs would strike back with a 7-1 run of their own leaving the score at 26-15. However, it would not be enough as the Bulls put the Bulldogs away with a 4-0 run winning the game 30-15.
In the final game, The Citadel would battle South Florida hard in the beginning keeping the score tied at 8. They would continue to keep it close trading runs with the Bulls. Although, with the score at 15-12, South Florida would put some distance between them with a 6-0 run. After trading a couple of points the Bulls would strike again with a 4-0 run putting the game pretty much out of reach at 26-14. South Florida would win the game and the match 30-16.
Appalachian State 3, Troy 2
Appalachian State 1, Rice 3
Appalachian State 0, South Carolina 3
September 7, 2007 - Columbia, S.C. ? Appalachian State University volleyball split a pair of games on the opening day of the Nike Gamecock Classic, winning 3-2 over Troy in the early match and falling 3-1 to Rice in the nightcap.
Senior Brittany Zahn led ASU with 37 total kills on the day while Dianna Thomas had 33 to put the Mountaineers’ record at 2-6 on the young season.
In the opener against Troy, the Mountaineers won the first game, 31-29, before dropping games two and three, 27-30 and 25-30. The squad fought to take the fourth game, 30-19, and rallied from behind to win the fifth game, 15-13.
Zahn a her game-high 24 kills on 55 attempts for a .273 hitting percentage. Classmate Dianna Thomas followed closely with 12 kills while freshmen Jackie Santarelli and Lauren Swecker each had 10 kills. Sophomore Heather Kale led the defensive effort with 21 digs and Charissa Clearman had 56 assists as the primary setter. Kerry Heinz paced Troy with 20 kills in the loss.
In the decisive fifth game, ASU trailed 10-7 before kills from Thomas, Santarelli and Swecker and a ball-handling error from the Trojans gave ASU a 11-10 lead. The Apps maintained the one-point advantage until back-to-back attack errors from the Trojans and a kill from Zahn gave ASU the victory.
ASU dropped the first two games to Rice, 30-24 and 30-23, before rallying to win the third game 30-28. Unfortunately the Apps couldn’t maintain that momentum, falling 30-28 in the fourth game. Thomas had 21 kills on 31 attempts for a stout .548 hitting percentage while Zahn and Carla Durham each hit double-figures with 13 and 11 kills, respectively.
The Owls had four players with double-figure kills with Natalie Bogan and Jennifer McClean each recording 16. Setter Meredith Schamun had 62 assists on the team’s 75 kills.
ASU never led in the first game and took a brief lead in the second game before a 17-9 Rice run put the lead out of reach. In the third game, ASU led until the Owls tied the contest at 23-23. After Rice claimed the lead, the Apps went on a 7-3 run to win the game and force a fourth frame. Much of the fourth game was played with both teams within two points of each other until ASU built up a 25-20 lead. Unfortunately the squad couldn’t maintain that lead as four-straight attack errors opened the door for Rice as they held on for the victory.
September 8, 2007 - Columbia, S.C. ? Appalachian State University volleyball fell in the final match of the Nike Gamecock Classic by a 3-0 margin to homestanding South Carolina. Seniors Brittany Zahn and Dianna Thomas were named to the all-tournament team at the conclusion of the tournament.
The Gamecocks rolled in the first two games, winning 30-18 and 30-17, before the Mountaineers fought back in the third game before falling, 30-27. The Apps ended the final game on a 7-1 to nearly force a fourth game.
Zahn led the Mountaineers with a game-high 14 kills while Thomas had 10. The Gamecocks were led by Megan Laughlin’s 10 kills and Jordan Bradosky’s five aces. ASU falls to 2-7 with the loss and Gamecocks improve to 7-2.
The Apps were often their own worst enemy in the loss, committing a total of 45 errors to USC’s 21. Senior setter Lorelle Rau had a game-high 37 assists for ASU while Lauren Swecker and Dianne Hefner each had eight digs.
Zahn earned all-tourney honors with 51 kills (4.25 per game) and Thomas had 43 kills (3.58) to lead ASU to a 1-2 finish in the Gamecock Classic.
College of Charleston 0, Ohio University 3
College of Charleston 1, Notre Dame 3
Four Bobcats had double-digit kills, including a match-high 16 by Melissa Griffin, to lead the #13th-ranked Ohio volleyball team to the 3-0 win over the College of Charleston (30-23, 30-25, 36-34) in the Notre Dame Shamrock Invitational at the Joyce Center on Saturday.
With the win Ohio improves to 5-2, while Charleston falls to 3-3.
Following Griffin’s 16 kills was Stephanie Blackburn with 13 and Ellen Herman with 12. Jane Sytsma also had double-figures in kills with her 11 on the afternoon.
Freshman Whitney Russell led the Cougars with 12 kills, while Emily Sawin added nine. Megan Parkerson had nine digs, with Cole Dawley following closely with eight on the match.
Megan Fesl had 19 kills while teammate Adrianna Stasiuk added 16 kills leading Notre Dame women's volleyball team to a 3-1 win over the College of Charleston (30-24, 24-30, 30-26, 30-19) in opening round action in the Notre Dame Shamrock Invitational at the Joyce Center on Friday.
With the win, Notre Dame improved to 3-2, while Charleston saw its three-match winning streak snapped and fell to 3-2.
The Cougars got a team-high 15 kills from freshman Cole Dawley and 18 digs from Megan Parkerson. Annie Uthe and Whitney Russell added 12 and 10 kills each respectively.
Davidson 3, Air Force 0
Davidson 2, Garnder-Webb 3
Davidson 3, North Central A&T
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. --The Davidson Wildcat volleyball team earned a split in the final day of competition at the Gardner-Webb Invitational, downing Air Force 3-0 (30-15, 30-27, 30-19) in the first match of the day before falling 3-2 (30-26, 27-30, 30-20, 30-24, 12-15) to the host Bulldogs in the nightcap.
At the end of the weekend, the 'Cats are 5-3 overall. Gardner-Webb is 6-5.
Senior Katie Pierucci, freshman Sarabeth Peele and junior Kittery Neale each had nine kills in the morning match to lead Davidson past Air Force. The 'Cats dominated the Falcons 15-6 on the block, with junior Alison Dwyer leading both squads with five.
Pierucci opened the first game with a service ace, and Davidson used an 8-2 run to take an early lead behind kills from freshmen Jorden Benedict and Peele. The Falcons never settled into a rhythm, and Davidson used another 14-1 run to open a devastating 23-8 lead for the 30-15 win.
In the second game, neither team managed to gain more than a point advantage, and the score was knotted as late as 25-25 before Peele gave Davidson the lead. With Peele serving, the 'Cats won a pair of points to take a 28-26 lead. A kill from Pierucci gave the 'Cats a game-point chance, but the Falcons got it back on a putaway from Caroline Kurtz. Nonetheless, Pierucci answered to lift Davidson to a 30-27 win in the second game.
After the break, the Falcons ran out of steam with Davidson running off the first six points and eventually taking a commanding 21-9 lead late in the game. The Falcons never got closer than 10, as Davidson rolled on for the 30-19 win to take the match.
In the night's match with Gardner-Webb, four Wildcat hitters reached double digits in kills, led by Peele who posted 21, along with Pierucci (12), Dwyer (11) and Neale (10).
In the first game, the 'Cats took an early lead, but fell behind on a kill from Ashley Pridgeon at 12-11. Gardner-Webb stayed on top until an ace from Peele knotted the score at 17-17, and the 'Cats won the next two points to take a 19-17 lead. Though things would stay close for the rest of the game, it would be enough for the 30-26 win.
Game two was back and forth before the 'Cats pieced together a three-point run to take a slight lead. Neither team, though, could gain a true edge and the score was even as late as 26-26. Heidi Steinebrunner posted one of her 23 kills to put the 'Dogs ahead, and Gardner-Webb won the next two points to take a 29-26 lead. Freshman Hayley Lawson's putaway of a pass from senior Courtney Cron saved the game for the 'Cats, but Pridgeon lifted Gardner-Webb to a 30-27 win in game two to even the match.
Things started coming together for the 'Cats in game three, and with Peele serving, they strung together six points to take an early 11-5 lead. The Bulldogs mounted a couple attacks, but that margin held up for an easy 30-20 win to take a 2-1 lead in the match. But the story was nearly reversed in game four, with the Bulldogs jumping out to an early 11-4 lead. Down as much as 20-13 at one point, the 'Cats kept fighting, but couldn't get closer than five, as the 'Dogs went on for the 30-24 win to force the decisive game five.
On a pair of Bulldog errors, the 'Cats won the first two points of the match-deciding game and opened up an important 4-1 early lead. But Gardner-Webb tied the score at 6-6, went ahead on a kill from Steinbrunner and never relinquished the lead, marching to a 15-12 win to take the match.
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. -- Senior Katie Pierucci, junior Alison Dwyer and freshman Jorden Benedict each tallied eight kills to lead the Davidson Wildcat volleyball team to a 3-0 (30-24, 30-17, 30-21) win over N.C. A&T in the opening match of the Gardner-Webb Invitational.
WIth the win, the 'Cats improve to 4-2 on the season, while A&T falls to 0-8. Pierucci also led the team's defensive effort with 16 digs, while senior Lindsey Woeste had 11. Freshman setter Hayley Lawson totaled 33 assists.
In the opening game, both teams traded points until Davidson used a five-point run to open up a 10-5 lead. The Bulldogs kept fighting, getting the score knotted at 16 before senior Courtney Cron served four straight points to help Davidson take a lead it would not relinquish.
Game two was a different story, as the 'Cats found themselves down 11-5 after a 7-0 Bulldog run. Davidson rallied with an 8-1 run of its own behind strong serving from Benedict and Lawson. Things went back and forth until Woeste started a six-point run with a service ace to open up the 22-16 lead the 'Cats would ride to a 2-0 advantage in the match.
With the match on the line, Davidson took another 10-5 lead in game three and never looked back, eventually opening up a 20-10 lead on a kill from junior Kittery Neale. The 'Cats rolled on for the 30-21 win for the match.
Georgia Southern 0, Lamar 3
Georgia Southern 1, Denver 3
Georgia Southern 1, TCU 3
Georgia Southern 0, New Orleans 3
FORT WORTH, TEXAS --- The Georgia Southern volleyball team lost a pair of matches at the 2007 Molten/LaQuinta Invitational Friday. The Eagles fell 3-0 (30-21, 30-22, 30-17) to Lamar and 3-1 (30-16, 30-12, 30-32, 30-22) to Denver.
Lamar 3, Georgia Southern 0
Lamar (4-5) hit .381 as a team and had nine blocks in a 3-0 (30-21, 30-22, 30-17) sweep of Georgia Southern (3-5).
The early stages of game one went back-and-forth and saw a 15-15 tie after a kill by freshman Sarah Gildersleeve (Naples, Fla.). Lamar took over from there, ending on a 15-6 run. LU recorded a .435 attack percentage and committed only three errors.
The momentum carried into game two as the Cardinals rolled to a 2-0 advantage.
Lamar took advantage of eight Georgia Southern attacking errors in game three and used a 6-0 run to pull away.
All 14 GSU players saw action in the match. Junior Bianca Julio (Curitiba, Brazil) had nine kills while junior Christy Dowd (Indianapolis, Ind.) and senior Gorana Bacic (Richmond, Va.) recorded eight each. Junior Mae Chabra (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) had 29 assists and senior Flavia Pereira (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) led the defensive efforts with 11 digs.
Lamar’s Kaci Brewer led all players with 17 kills and Adrianne Meengs dished out 49 assists. Brewer recorded a double-double with 17 digs.
Denver 3, Georgia Southern 1
Georgia Southern (3-6) totaled 55 digs and nine blocks but hit just .009 in dropping a 3-1 (30-16, 30-12, 30-32, 30-22) decision to Denver (4-3).
Much like the match earlier in the day, game one was tight early ? tied 11-11 ? before an 11-2 run gave the Pioneers the lead.
Game two was all Denver who led by as many as 19 points. Georgia Southern struggled, totaling just two kills against eight errors.
The Eagles rallied from 27-24 deficit to lead 29-27 and got a key block from Chabra and Gildersleeve. But The Pioneers staved off two match points, but a block from Gildersleeve and Bacic closed out the game.
Denver used a 10-1 rally in game four to come from behind and cruise to the victory.
DU had three players in double-digit kills, led by Kim Muller and Holly Benson who had 18 each. Benson also added 18 digs.
Chabra (5) and Gildersleeve (4) combined for nine blocks and Bacic posted a team-high eight kills.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS --- The Georgia Southern volleyball team fell in its final two matches at the 2007 Molten/LaQuinta Invitational Saturday. The Eagles lost 3-1 (32-34, 30-15, 31-29, 30-14) to host TCU and 3-0 (30-18, 30-22, 30-18) to New Orleans.
The Eagles drop to 3-8 on the season.
TCU 3, Georgia Southern 1
Game one was all GSU early on, but the Horned Frogs rallied from a 17-8 deficit in game one to tie it up at 18-18. The Eagles went back up 28-24, but after a kill by TCU’s Lauren Otto, GSU errors on three of the next four points gave the Horned Frogs a chance to close out the game. But a service error saved the Eagles and a kill by Gorana Bacic (Richmond, Va.) finally gave Georgia Southern a 1-0 lead.
Game two was never in doubt, but game three matched the intensity of game one. GSU led 15-10, 27-23 and 29-27, but TCU came back with four straight points, closing it out on a service run by Nirelle Hampton.
The Horned Frogs jumped out to an 8-1 lead in the final frame and cruised to the win.
Junior Bianca Julio (Curitiba, Brazil) led the Eagles with 17 kills and added 12 digs. Junior Mae Chabra (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) had 40 assists and freshman Marissa Odom (Gainesville, Fla.) totaled 15 digs.
For Texas Christian, LeMeita Smith posted a match-high 21 kills and a .475 hitting percentage. Kourtney Edwards added 18 kills and Loren Barry recorded 24 digs.
New Orleans 3, Georgia Southern 0
The Privateers broke away with late runs in the first two games, using a 7-1 run in game one and a 14-6 run to close out game two. An 11-2 start in the final game put the outcome beyond doubt.
Georgia Southern hit just .000 as a team in the final two games and UNO totaled eight team blocks. Junior Christy Dowd (Indianapolis, Ind.) was the only Eagle in double-figure kills with 10. Chabra added 28 assists. New Orleans’ Lindsey Loyd and Lindsey Boler recorded 13 kills apiece