#1S Furman 3, #2N Appalachian State 0
#2S College of Charleston 3, #1N Samford 1
Semifinal 1 Slideshow
Semifinal 2 Slideshow
GREENVILLE, S.C. - Defending tournament champion and No. 1 South seed Furman extended its winning streak to 19 matches with a 3-0 sweep of the No. 2 North seed Appalachian State in the first semifinal match of the 2009 Southern Conference Volleyball Championship Saturday in Alley Gymnasium on the campus of Furman University. Furman will face the No. 2 South seed College of Charleston in a rematch of last season's championship which the Paladins won 3-2.
The Cougars, who are making their seventh consecutive championship appearance, defeated the No. 1 North seed Samford 3-1.
The championship match is slated for Sunday at 2 p.m.
The Paladins posted a .353 attack percentage for the match, led by league Freshman of the Year Caroline Adams who hit .533 and added nine kills. Chandler Ambrester notched 14 kills and four blocks for the Paladins, while Natalie Braun had 12 kills and a block. Kelsey Salava, the conference player of the year, tallied 42 assists.
The Mountaineers were led by Maja Jechorek who hit .429 and recorded 14 kills. Cassie Engelgau had 10 digs for ASU, while Kasey Sauls posted 28 assists.
Furman took the first set by a score of 25-12. The Paladins hit .565 in the set and tallied 14 kills, including five from Natalie Braun. Furman also recorded two service aces and four blocks. The Mountaineers posted seven kills with three coming from Jechorek.
The second set proved to be much closer with three ties and two lead changes. Furman led by as many as five points in the early going, but Appalachian State battled back to tie it at 18 on an error by the Paladins. The Mountaineers took the lead on a Maggie Seeds kill and increased their advantage to as many as three points before Furman stormed back. The Paladins tied it on a kill by Caroline Adams and took the lead on an attack by Natalie Braun. Adams struck again with a kill to give the Paladins the match 26-24.
Furman controlled the third and final match, eventually winning 25-15. Appalachian State was able to pull within three points at 16-13 before the Paladins went on a run to put the set away. A kill by Adams set up match point for Furman and a Mountaineer attack error clinched the match and a second consecutive trip to the championship for the Paladins.
Furman moved to 26-3 on the season, while Appalachian State finished the season 14-17.
In the second semifinal of the day, College of Charleston rebounded from losing the first set to defeat Samford 3-1.
The Cougars were led by Sarah Havel who hit .481 and notched 14 kills. Elyse Chubb and Katie Robinson chipped in 10. CofC had a team attack percentage of .288. Cole Dawley added a double-double with 45 assists and 16 digs.
Sheriden Stangohr led Samford with 16 kills and a .303 hitting percentage. Hillary Fountain recorded 31 assists, while Alexis Bauer tallied 13 digs for the Bulldogs.
The first set saw six ties, but the Bulldogs were able to hold off the Cougars and win the first set by a score of 25-23. It marked the first set that Samford won against CofC this season, as their one regular season match was a 3-0 sweep by the Cougars. Hillary Fountain posted a .750 attack percentage and Allie Bettinger tallied five kills for the Bulldogs. CofC was able to pull within one at 24-23, but Samford responded and clinched the set on a kill by Sheriden Stangohr. Katie Robinson led the Cougars in the first set posting five kills. Elyse Chubb and Ginny Phillips added two blocks apiece for CofC.
College of Charleston responded in the second set and won 26-24. With the score knotted at 24, the 10th tie of the set, Ginny Phillips notched a kill to give the Cougars match point, which they earned on a Samford attack error. Neither team recorded an attack percentage above .200 in the second set. The Bulldogs posted 15 kills to the Cougars' 10.
CofC took the third set 25-23. Despite seven ties, the lead changed only once as the Cougars were able to hold off the Bulldogs' rallies. Samford pulled within a point and made the score 24-23, but an attack error by Hillary Fountain gave the set to College of Charleston. The Cougars posted a .235 attack percentage, while the Bulldogs hit less than .100. Each team tallied 13 kills in the set.
The Cougars claimed the fourth and final set by a score of 25-20. There were seven ties and five lead changes, but once CofC took the lead at 14-13 it never looked back. A kill by Jennifer Darty gave the Cougars the match and another trip to the championship. CofC hit .412 in the fourth set compared to a .205 attack percentage by Samford. The Cougars edged the Bulldogs in kills 16-14.
College of Charleston moved to 17-12 on the season, and Samford finished 17-14