Chattanooga 3, Southeastern Louisiana 1
Chattanooga 3, Louisiana Tech 2

RUSTON, La. - After a victory against Grambling last night, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga volleyball team recorded two wins today against Southeastern Louisiana and Louisiana Tech at the Techster Home Tournament. The match with the Lady Techsters went to the brink as both teams battled to a 11-all tie in the fifth set. Then the hosts took the next two points, only to be out done the Lady Mocs, who secured the match winning the next four rallies with senior Cassie Conner (Willow Springs, Ill.) servicing.

Sophomore Ellie Kuhn (San Antonio, Texas), sophomore Laura Brock (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and junior Courtney Barnes (Franklin, Tenn.) received all-tournament honors for their roles helping the Lady Mocs win the Techster Home Tournament. Brock registered two double-doubles, while Barnes led the team in kills with 28 and Kuhn was credited with 18 blocks.

"I think that winning this tournament was important because we came here with a goal to leave 8-3," said head coach Lisa Rhodes. "I think it is a great confidence builder. All the teams that we played here were very strong. It was not like they were push over teams under any means. It was good competition for us."

This was the first sweep of a nonconference tournament for the Lady Mocs since they won the Hilton Garden Challenge where they hosted Jackson State and Austin Peay during the 2005 season.

Chattanooga accomplished the same feat on the road back in 2002 at the Battle on the Bayou in Monroe, La, which coincidentally was the last time the Lady Mocs attended a tournament in Louisiana. There they beat Centenary, Mississippi Valley State and host Louisiana-Monroe.

The Lady Mocs lost the first set of match against Louisiana Tech, but came back for a fifth-set triumph. It was the first time this season that the team did not lose after dropping the initial set.

"Well, I think that we were just tired," said Rhodes. "The first set you could tell that we were a little sluggish, so we made a change in the lineup and I think that change really helped. It gave an opportunity to get some fresh players out there and a gave them a different look. We ran a 6-2 giving us a bigger lineup on the front line, which is big because Louisiana Tech is a huge team height wise. Meagan Ernd had a couple of big swings and huge blocks that were crucial towards the end of the match."

The Lady Mocs now prepare for Belmont on Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. in Maclellan Gym. Then the Southern Conference portion of the schedule begins for Chattanooga as they welcome Elon and UNC Greensboro this weekend. Chattanooga hosts the Phoenix Saturday at 3 p.m., while battling the Spartans Sunday at 5 p.m.

Game 1

In an offensive explosion, the University of Chattanooga volleyball team had three individuals in freshman Kirsten Beasley (Amarrillo, Texas), sophomore Laura Brock (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and junior Bailee Chastain (Signal Mountain, Tenn.) record double-doubles during the Lady Mocs 3-1 (25-13, 25-17, 22-25, 25-23) defeat of Southeastern Louisiana. Brock and Beasley each had 12 kills and 14 digs, while Chastain posted another 12 kills along with 43 assists.

With the victory over Southeastern Louisiana, the Lady Mocs improved their record to 7-3 this season, while dropping the Lady Lions to 2-7.

Junior middle blocker Courtney Barnes (Franklin, Tenn.) continued to hit smartly with a .417 attack percentage leading the match. The Franklin, Tenn., native also had 12 kills and four blocks. Sophomore Ellie Kuhn blocked a match-high five attacks, two of them were solo, along with five kills.

Pacing the Chattanooga defense was freshman libero Paula Passmore (Merrit Island, Fla.), who recorded 18 digs and a service ace during the contest.

The Lady Mocs notched decisive victories in sets one and two by only giving up 13 and 17 points, respectively, but their opponents the Lady Lions fought back in the third set recording a 25-22 win. Chattanooga hit .330 in the first two frames registering 14 kills in each with only eight errors total.

Once again, Chattanooga proved to be too much for its opponent in the fifth set as the squad had a 21-16 lead and closed out Southeast Louisiana 25-23. The Lady Lions committed 14 errors in the final frame.

Outside hitters Beasley and Brock were key in Chattanooga taking the first two sets as both players had eight kills each, while Barnes led the way in the final stanza with five kills. The Lady Mocs posted 51 kills and 70 digs, while limiting Southeastern Louisana to 44 kills and 64 digs.

Game 2

In the second suspenseful five-set match of the year, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga volleyball team came through with another key victory over host Louisiana Tech, 3-2 (19-25, 25-19, 25-23, 17-25, 15-13). The come from behind win was the first one for the squad this season after dropping the first set. The team improved its record to 8-3 on the year, while the Lady Techseters fell to 9-5.

Chattanooga had 11 players see action in the second match of the day. Sophomore Stephanie Harville (Morristown, Tenn.) led the Lady Mocs attack with 13 kills, while  Brock posted her second double-double of the day and fourth of the season registering 10 kills and a season-high 16 digs.

Both setters Chastain and Conner positioned the Lady Mocs' hitters in scoring situations during the entire match combining for 56 assists. Chastain paced the squad with 28.

For the second time in as many days, Passmore recorded 30 digs leading Chattanooga defensively. 

In the first set, the Lady Mocs showed that they played thirty minutes before their match with Louisiana Tech as the team was unable to be consistent on offense as the Lady Techsters took a 25-19 win behind 18 kills.

The team's youth and enthusiasm showed in the second frame as Chattanooga tied up the match with a 25-19 victory. The squad recorded 14 kills on only three errors, while capitalizing on the 10 mistakes the Lady Techsters made.

Lady Mocs recorded a comeback down 20-16 to tie it at 21-all before taking the set 25-23 and  a 2-1 lead in the match. Chattanooga registered 18 kills in the frame with a .225 hitting percentage.

UTC was unable to close out the match in the fourth set as they made 10 mistakes allowing the hosts to take the set, 25-17. Both teams entered the ninth set of the day in the fifth frame as each team won in four sets earlier in the day.

In the fifth set, the teams played even through the first 20 points as the Lady Mocs rallied from three down to tie it at 10-all. The match then went the way of the hosts, who took a 13-11 lead, but Chattanooga fought back to take a 15-13 win recording the last four points of the match.

This was the second time this season that the Lady Mocs battled back to victory after allowing their opponent to score 13 points in the final frame. Back on Aug. 30, James Madision jumped out to a 13-9 lead, but behind Chastain Chattanooga registered the next six points to shock the Dukes in Morehead, Ky.

Samford 3, Arkansas-Little Rock 0
Samford 3, UAB 1

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University volleyball team won its final two matches in the Memphis Tiger Invitational Saturday, moving the Bulldogs to 6-7 on the season. The win over the Trojans was Samford's first-ever.  The win over UAB was its second in a series of 23 matches, first since 2001.

Samford defeated UALR in the noon match Saturday, 3-0 (26-24, 25-18, 25-23), and UAB in the evening match, 3-1 (25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 25-22).

"We did not come out strong in any set against UALR but made plays after 20 to win," Samford head coach Derek Schroeder said. "That, more than anything, shows that we are maturing and continue to grow this season.  The UAB match was kind of an ugly match after a long four-match weekend. I was glad we made plays when we needed to in order to win some close sets. We took some big steps forward this weekend. We had been creeping along but took some very large strides towards our goals."

The Bulldogs led for most of the first set against UALR, leading by as much as six at one time. However, the Trojans fought back to tie the score at 23 and took their first lead of the game, but Samford answered back and tied the score at 24 on a kill by Allie Bettinger then won the game on an ace by Bettinger and a block by Shelby Brandon and Rachel Gadberry.

Samford then dominated the second set after overcoming an early fight by the Trojans. UALR kept the game close until the Bulldogs were able to pull ahead by four on two kills by Bettinger and a couple of Trojan errors. Samford then forged ahead and won the second set, 25-18.

After falling behind by eight early in third set, the Bulldogs pulled back within three and eventually tied the score at 23. Samford was able to execute in the final minutes and win, 25-23, on a block by Neisler and Stangohr and a kill by Neisler.

Bettinger and Sheriden Stanoghr led the Bulldogs against the Trojans. Bettinger knocked down 13 kills while hitting .243 and adding seven digs, two aces and one assists. Stangohr tallied 12 kills, hitting .450, with four block assists, one block solo, two digs and one ace. Gadberry posted a team-high .571 hitting percentage with eight kills on 14 attempts and no error. She also added two block assists and one dig.

Hillary Fountain dished out 38 assists and seven digs while also grabbing three kills on 10 attempts with no errors and two block assists. Alexis Bauer led her team in digs with 12 while also grabbing three aces. Samantha Bland was near behind with eight digs and one assist. Elizabeth Neisler added seven kills, one block assist and one assist while Brandon had two kills, one dig and three block assists. Casey Garvey had two assists, two aces and six digs.

UALR was led by Anita Bucur with 19 kills while Giuliana DeFrancesco dished out a team-high 34 assists and Emily Pepperman had 13 digs.

Samford took an early lead over the Blazers in the first set before UAB fought back to tie the game at 13. The Blazers briefly held the lead but a couple of errors gave Samford the lead back and the Bulldogs would go on to win the first set, 25022, on a kill by Stangohr.

The Bulldogs fell behind by as much as five in the second set but soon tied the score at 15 and took over from there. Back-to-back kills by Gadberry and Fountain put Samford ahead by two and with the help from a block by Fountain and Stangohr and kill by Neisler, the Bulldogs would go on to win the second set, 25-21.

Samford opened up the third set with consecutive kills Bettinger and Gadberry but the Blazers answered back a tied the score at two. The Bulldogs then took over the lead, going ahead by as much as three but UAB soon caught up and would go on to win, 25-22.

The score to the fourth set was similar to the third, except the tables were turned for the Bulldogs. The Blazers were the first to score in the final set but Samford quickly answered back with four straight kills, two by Brandon and one each by Gadberry and Bettinger. UAB briefly held a lead by as much as three but the Bulldogs fought back to tie the score at 16 and took over, going on to win, 25-22.

Against the Blazers, the Bulldogs were led by Bettinger, Neisler and Stangohr. Bettinger racked up 19 kills while hitting .245 and grabbing seven digs. Neisler added 12 kills, three digs, three block assists and one block solo while Stangohr knocked down 10 kills and had four digs, four block assists and two aces.

Fountain posted a season-high 50 assists along with nine digs, six kills and two block assists. Bauer also notched a career-high 28 digs while Garvey also had a career-high 13 digs. Bauer also had four assists and one kill while Garvey had two assists.

Brandon led the team in hitting with a .381 percentage, tallying eight kills on 21 attempts with no errors. She also added three digs, two block assists and one block solo. Gadberry added six kills, two digs and three block assists while Bland had nine digs, two assists and two aces.

UAB was led by Sam Serley with 14 digs followed by Savannah Pegg and Michelle Uzoh with 11 and 10, respectively. Alison Woods dished out a team-high 36 assists while Heather Thomas and MacKenzie Wilson with 18 and 10 digs, respectively.

Samford kicks of the conference season next weekend with a four-match home stand starting with UNC Greensboro and Elon, Sept. 26-27. Then, the Bulldogs will host Southern Conference rival Chattanooga on Wednesday, Sept. 30, before taking on Davidson, Oct. 4, to close out the two-week stint at home.

UNC Greensboro 3, La Salle 0
UNC Greensboro 3, North Carolina State 2

GREENSBORO, N.C. - UNC Greensboro swept La Salle, 3-0, earlier in the afternoon before dispatching NC State, 3-2, in the final match of the UNCG Tournament on Saturday in Fleming Gymnasium. Junior Billie Baker was named to the All-Tournament Team for her efforts over the weekend.

The Spartans advanced to 6-7 on the season with the pair of wins. La Salle fell to 2-15 this year, while NC State is now 7-8.

"I was really proud of the way we played getting back-to-back wins today," said head coach Patrick Nicholas. "The biggest thing we have been talking about lately is sticking together as a team. We started well tonight, but what set tonight apart was we were able to finish strong and I was really proud of that. I was happy that our defense is at a high level right now and we are becoming more aggressive in our blocking."

Caley Redden, Catherine Hanners, Emily Lindborg and Kayren Finney each had double-digit kills in the match against NC State and four Spartans also had double-digit digs. Ari Lysacek had a match-high 53 assists in the match.

In the first set, the two sides were knotted at 18 late in the set before the Wolfpack rattled off the next five points en route to winning the set, 25-20.

The Spartans set the tone for the second set by jumping out to a 5-0 lead on a block by Baker and Finney. UNCG stretched its lead to 19-6 on a kill by Lindborg before she added another to cap off the set for the Spartans, 25-15.

The two squads once again found themselves trading points as they were tied at 15. UNCG was able to take a 23-19 lead late in the set, but the Wolfpack responded to take the next five points to have set-point. The Spartans fought off set-point and tied the match at 25 before winning the final two points on a kill by Finney and a service ace by Kayleigh Knerr to win the set, 27-25.

In the fourth set, the Spartans found themselves with double match-point, but the Wolfpack fought back to win the final four points in the set to set a decisive fifth and final set.

After dropping the first point in the fifth set, UNCG claimed the next seven points to take a commanding 7-1 lead. This time the Spartans were able to take care of match-point with a Lindborg kill to win the set, 15-9.

Luciana Shafer had a team-high 12 kills and Finney added nine kills in the first match. Redden had a match-high 13 digs and freshman Lysacek had 31 assists as well.

The Spartans took an 8-1 lead to start the first set against the Explorers on a kill by Redden. UNCG cruised to a 25-13 set win thanks to four kills in the set by Shafer.

UNCG led 17-7 midway through the set to find itself with a large lead once again. Shafer added another five kills in the second set and a Redden kill iced the set for the Spartans, 25-13.

The third set was a little closer as the Spartans led just 14-13 in the set, but was able to pull through and win the set, 25-18, to give UNCG the match.

The Spartans will now have a week off before returning to action next Saturday at Samford at 2 p.m. CST to kick off Southern Conference play.

Wofford 3, UNC Asheville 0

ORANGEBURG, N.C. - The Wofford volleyball team earned its second win over UNC-Asheville this season, taking a 3-set victory at the SC State Spikefest on Saturday.

The Terriers won the first two sets easily, taking early leads in both and never allowing the Bulldogs back in the game. Wofford took the first set by a score of 25-16 and the second 25-13.

The third set was a back-and-forth affair that saw 14 ties and four lead changes before the Terriers prevailed 30-28. Wofford took an early 4-1 lead, but the Bulldogs battled back to tie the score at 8. Wofford had another slight advantage at 15-12, but UNC-Asheville again tied the score at 16. The two teams battled back and forth until the Bulldogs took their first lead of the match at 23-22. Wofford claimed game point advantage five times, but it took two straight Terrier kills from Shanna Hughes and Stacy Byrd to finish the match with a score of 30-28.

Lauren Ficker led the Bulldogs with eight kills and Cindi Miller added seven in the loss. The Bulldogs' defense was led by 30 digs from libero Raquel Miotto.

Wofford's offense was led by senior Shanna Hughes and junior Stacy Byrd, who each recorded 11 kills in the win. Both notched double-doubles in the victory with 13 and 12 digs, respectively. Freshman Arden Anderson added eight kills and led the team with a .571 attack percentage, while libero Sarah Palmer led the floor defense with 14 digs.

With the win, Wofford improves to 11-2 on the season while UNC-Asheville falls to 11-5. The Terriers will take on Hampton at 5:00 pm on Saturday in their final match at the SC State Spikefest.

Wofford 3, Hampton 0

ORANGEBURG, S.C. - The Wofford volleyball team finished the SC State Spikefest with a perfect 4-0 record after defeated Hampton 3-0 on Saturday in Orangeburg, S.C.

The Terriers battled back from an early 1-4 deficit in the first set, tying the score at five before claiming their own comfortable lead at 14-10. Wofford capitalized on several Hampton errors, never allowing the Pirates back in the set, and claiming the 25-17 win.

Wofford used its momentum from the first set to open the second set with a 10-5 lead. The Terriers would not allow Hampton to come within more than two points for the remainder of the set on the way to a 25-13 victory.

Although the Terriers scored the first point of the third set off a Stacy Byrd kill, Hampton rallied to take its largest lead of the match thus far at 12-7. The Pirates were able to maintain the five-point lead up to 20-15 and then a kill from Adriana Vazquez extended the Hampton lead to six. A Rachel Woodlee kill spurred the Terrier response, and Wofford went on a 7-1 run behind the strong serving of Sarah Palmer to tie the score at 22. The Terriers then fought off two game points before claiming the 27-25 win.

Hampton was led by Aaryn Harrison's nine kills and Adriana Vazquez's 13 digs. The Pirates recorded a negative team attack percentage in both the first and second sets, and managed only a .019 mark for the match.

Senior Shanna Hughes paced the Terrier offense with nine kills and setter Joanna Suddath's 29 assists. Hughes and libero Sarah Palmer led the floor defense with 11 digs a piece while freshman Reagan Styles added 10.

With the win, the Terriers improve to 12-2 on the season and extend their winning streak to 11 matches. Hampton falls to 3-10 on the season. Wofford will return to action on Thursday, September 24 as they host Southern Wesleyan in a non-conference matchup. The Terriers will then kick off Southern Conference action as they welcome Georgia Southern on Friday and Davidson on Saturday.

College of Charleston 3, Lafayette 0

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Sophomore middle blocker Sarah Havel (Carmel, Ind.) had 10 kills and nine blocks and was named Tournament Most Valuable Player as the College of Charleston (4-7) knocked off Lafayette (7-3) 3-0 Saturday evening in the finale of the 2009 Holiday Inn Charleston Riverview Classic in Charleston, S.C. The Cougars earned their third straight victory by scores of 25-23, 25-7, 25-22.

Tied at 4-2 in the first set, the College of Charleston used a 6-1 run behind two kills apiece from sophomore outside hitter Katie Robinson (Gainesville, Fla.), sophomore middle blocker Elyse Chubb (Peachtree City, Ga.) and senior middle blocker Jennifer Darty (Orlando, Fla.) to take an 8-5 advantage.

The Leopards battled back and eventually took the lead, 18-16, but CofC rallied to tie it over the next two plays. Trailing 21-19, the Cougars mounted a decisive 4-0 run that put them up 23-21 and keyed their 25-23 Game 1 victory.

In the second frame, it was a far different story as the College of Charleston raced out to a 7-0 lead behind the serving of junior setter Cole Dawley (Charleston, S.C.). They quickly extended their lead to 12-4 before back-to-back Lafayette points made it 12-6. The Cougars then used a dominant 13-1 run, fueled by six Leopard errors and four CofC kills, to close out the set with a 25-7 decision. In that frame, Havel was dominant at the net as she collected a total of six blocks, two solo.

Up 2-0 in the match, the Cougars wasted no time as they scored the first six points in Game 3 by forcing four more Lafayette errors and drilling a pair of kills before allowing a 7-1 rally that tied the set at 7-7. A 4-0 run keyed by a pair of kills by sophomore outside hitter Katie Robinson (Gainesville, Fla.) then made it 11-7 and helped CofC put together a larger 8-2 run to extend to a 15-9 lead.

Lafayette scored five of the next six points to narrow the gap to 16-14 but the Cougars maintained their lead at 21-16. The Leopards would have their best chance as they scored five straight points to tie the match at 21-21 but CofC responded with a 4-1 run to put the match away with a 25-22 victory.

Junior outside hitter Kayly Elmer posted a team-high eight kills for Lafayette while senior outside hitter Cara Mulholland finished with seven kills and six digs. Senior setter Ashton Rossi paced the offense with 24 assists and added nine digs. Senior libero Kari Horn led the defense with 13 digs.

For the College of Charleston, Havel posted a second straight impressive performance as she notched 10 kills and nine blocks with a .500 hitting percentage. Junior setter Cole Dawley (Charleston, S.C.) dished out a match-high 31 assists and posted a double-double with 10 digs while adding three blocks and Katie Robinson drilled nine kills and came away with 10 digs and a pair of service aces.

Senior outside hitter Emily Sawin (New Lenox, Ill.) chipped in with nine kills and five digs while junior libero Paige Johnson (Sleepy Hollow, Ill.) led the defense with 14 digs. She was joined by Jennifer Darty with six kills and four blocks.

As a team, the College of Charleston hit .290 while holding the Leopards to a .078 mark.

The College of Charleston continues its seven-match homestand on Tuesday, September 22 when they face Charleston Southern at 7 p.m. in Carolina First Arena.

NOTES
Sarah Havel earned Most Valuable Player honors with 22 kills and 19 blocks on the weekend ... also named to the All-Tournament Team for the Cougars were Cole Dawley and Paige Johnson ... this was the first meeting between the two programs.

Georgia Southern 3, Gardner-Webb 2

ROCK HILL, S.C. - Freshman Moriah Bellissimo recorded her first double-double as an Eagle helping lead Georgia Southern to a 3-2 victory over Gardner-Webb Saturday morning (September 19). Sanford posted her sixth double-double of the season as the Eagles closed out the Wingate Inn Classic with a win. With the triumph, Georgia Southern improved to 9-5 on the year, while Gardner-Webb fell to 4-9.

The Eagles got off to a great start to the match, winning the first two sets, 25-16, 25-22, but the Lady Bulldogs fought back taking the next two sets, forcing a deciding fifth set. In dramatic fashion, Georgia Southern fought off three Gardner-Webb match points to edge the Bulldogs, 18-16, in the deciding set. With the teams tied at 16-all, Lauren Claybaugh (Danville, Calif.) recorded a solo block to give the Eagles their first match point at 17-16. Claybaugh followed her solo block with a block assist with Parker Small (Charlotte, N.C.) to secure the match win for the Eagles.

In the opening set, Georgia Southern took its first and last lead at 4-3 and never relinquished their advantage. The Eagles held their largest lead at set-point, 24-16. An attack error from the Bulldogs rounded out the opening stanza in which the Eagles hit a match-high .375 from the floor. Georgia Southern was paced by freshman Bellissimo (Blackstone, Va.) who recorded five kills.

Gardner-Webb kept the second set a little closer, but not close enough as the Eagles put together a 25-22 set win. Georgia Southern held the lead from 9-all until Gardner-Webb fought back, tying the set at 16 apiece. The teams would tie the set at every point until the Eagles pulled away with the lead following a 19-all tie. Georgia Southern went up 23-19 as the Lady Bulldogs pulled to within two at 23-21. But a kill by Bellissimo gave the Eagles set point and Georgia Southern closed out the second set, 25-22 with a kill by Sarah Gildersleeve (Naples, Fla.).

Hitting .429 in the third set and .487 in the fourth, Gardner-Webb fought back to even the match at 2-all winning the next two sets. Georgia Southern was held to its lowest hitting percentage of the morning in the third set, striking only .158 from the floor. Only six kills were recorded by the Eagles in the third set to Gardner-Webb's 15. Laura Wilcox posted seven kills for the Lady Bulldogs in the fourth set, leading Gardner-Webb to a 25-16 win. With the help of Molly Rhyne and Evan Moffitt, who each posted four kills, the Lady Bulldogs took the fourth set, forcing the fifth set.

Georgia Southern held Gardner-Webb to a .077 attack percentage in the final set and was led by sophomore outside hitter Sanford (Avondale, Ariz.) who posted four kills in the deciding set. Rhyne's five kills for Gardner-Webb were not enough as Georgia Southern outlasted the Lady Bulldogs, 18-16, to decide the match.

For the match, Bellissimo posted 13 kills and 14 digs for her first collegiate double-double. Meanwhile, teammate Sanford posted her sixth double-double of the season with 16 kills and 17 digs. Georgia Southern hit .278 for the match to Gardner-Webb's .277. Rhyne carried the Lady Bulldogs recording 19 kills as Wilcox posted double figures with 18 kills and 10 digs. Moffitt also posted a double-double for Gardner-Webb, owning 12 kills and 11 digs.

Georgia Southern concluded its fall tournament schedule with the Wingate Inn Classic and opens conference play next week on the road. The Eagles take on the Wofford Terriers Friday, September 25, at 7 p.m. and then challenge Furman, Saturday at 2 p.m.

Georgia State 3, Elon 2
Elon 3, Navy 0

ELON, N.C. - The Phoenix volleyball team had its 11-match winning steak broken with a 3-2 (18-25, 25-13, 25-16, 25-27, 10-15) loss to Georgia State before rallying to defeat Navy 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 25-13) in the final day of the Phoenix Classic. Elon is now 12-1 on the season, while Navy falls to 3-10 and Georgia State improves to 11-3, following a win against Norfolk State. 

Picking up all-tournament honors for Elon were Jessica Barrow and Sarah Schermerhorn. Schermerhorn finished the weekend with 26 kills in 52 attempts and just five errors for a .404 hitting percentage. She also tallied two solo and six assisted blocks. Barrow recorded 22 kills and totaled four assisted blocks.

Lauren Copenhagen and Barrow tallied eight kills each against Navy, followed closely by Caroline Lemke with seven. Schermerhorn and Traci Stewart recorded five kills each. Lizzie West notched four service aces, followed by Emily Regan and Allison Johnson with two. Paced by setter Emily Regan, who had 27 assists, the Phoenix earned a team hitting percentage of .341.

Stewart led Elon's defensive effort with three assisted blocks, while Schermerhorn and Lemke had two blocks each. Schermerhorn recorded the only solo block of the match for Elon. Ali Deatsch had 14 digs in the win.

For Navy, Krista Eschelman and Meghan Carpenter led the team with seven kills each. Eschelman finished with a .583 attack percentage after not committing an error in 12 attempts. Holly Berger tallied two service aces for the Mids.

Eschelman showed her defensive prowess, leading the team with three block assists. Maida Kalic' recorded Navy's only solo block of the night.

Against Georgia State in the first match of the day, Schermerhorn led the team with 14 kills, committing just one error, for an attack percentage of .500. She also tallied six total blocks that included one solo block and five block assists.  The Phoenix had three additional players record double-digit kills in Copenhagen (11), Lemke (11) and Stewart (12). Stewart and Lemke each added four assisted blocks.

Georgia State's Ashley Jones tied Schermerhorn with a match-high 14 kills, followed by Jamie Freeman and Vineece Verdun with 10 kills each. Chelsea Perry led the offensive attack for the Panthers with 31 assists.

Defensively, Verdun led the Panthers with two solo blocks and five block assists. Muki Kangwa and Jocelyn Waldern added four blocks each. Audrey Cantrell tallied a match-high 24 digs.

Earlier in the day, Navy defeated Norfolk State 3-1 before Georgia State handed Norfolk State a 3-0 loss.

Elon opens conference play next weekend as it travels to Chattanooga, Tenn., and Birmingham, Ala., to face Chattanooga and Samford. The Phoenix will take on the Lady Mocs Saturday at 2 p.m. before facing Samford at 3 p.m. on Sunday. Full coverage of the match will be available at www.elonphoenix.com.

The Citadel 3, Alabama State 0
Charleston Southern 3, The Citadel 1

Orangeburg, S.C. - The Citadel Volleyball team swept Alabama State on Saturday morning and fell to Charleston Southern in the afternoon match, 3-1. The Bulldogs finished the South Carolina State Spikefest 2-2 after splitting both of their matches each day of the tournament.

In the morning match, the Cadets came out firing on all cylinders to earn their first sweep of the season and third win of the year over Alabama State, 3-0. In the first ever meeting between the two teams, The Citadel took the match 25-22, 25-14 and 29-27. Freshman Kaona Mercer had a career-high 10 kills while Rachael Farrell added eight kills and 10 digs along with two service aces to pace the Bulldogs. Kelsye Hall had 24 assists and seven digs to lead the Hornets (2-7).

In the tournament finale, the Bulldogs could not get past Charleston Southern (7-6) falling in four sets, 14-25, 25-23, 23-25 and 14-25. It was the second loss to the Bucs this season for The Citadel as they fell at home, 3-0 on Sept. 8. Jessica Maas led the Bulldogs with 12 kills, two digs and two service aces. Tatum Jestila added 10 kills and five digs. Amanda Hill had 22 kills and a service ace to fuel the Buccaneers.

The Bulldogs return to action next Saturday, Sept. 26 as they open Southern Conference play at McAlister Field House against Appalachian State at 1 p.m.

For more information on Bulldog Volleyball, visit the official website of The Citadel Athletics at www.CitadelSports.com.

Clemson 3, Furman 2

CLEMSON, S.C. - The Furman volleyball team fell to Clemson, 3-2, Saturday morning at Jervey Gymnasium in Clemson, S.C., in the Paladins' final match of the Clemson Classic. The Paladins won set one, 25-23, and set two, 26-24, before the Tigers won games three (25-18) and four (25-14) to force set five. The final set was tied 10 times before Clemson pulled away for a 16-14 win.

Two freshmen led the Paladins in the match. Caroline Adams, who was named to the all-tournament team, posted 17 kills and a .382 attack percentage, while also recording a team-high five block assists. Natalie Braun tallied 16 kills and 20 digs in the Paladin effort.

Junior Katherine Hall and sophomore Kelly Kirby each recorded 12 kills, while senior Stephanie Smith led the Paladins with 24 digs. Senior setter Kelsey Salava posted 56 assists and 14 digs for Furman.

Furman (7-3) will open Southern Conference play next Saturday at 2 p.m. when the Paladins take on the Eagles of Georgia Southern at Alley Gymnasium on the campus of Furman University in Greenville, S.C.

James Madison 3, Davidson 2

ROCK HILL, S.C. - With the match evened at two sets apiece, James Madison won the decisive fifth set, 18-16, to complete the comeback and capture a 3-2 (23-25, 26-24, 15-25, 25-22, 18-16) win over the Davidson Wildcats on the second day of play at the Wingate Classic in the WInthrop Coliseum.

Sarabeth Peele led Davidson (2-10) with another double-double performance of 22 kills and 11 digs, and Erin Lupfer added a season-high 17 kills, her first double-digit effort of the season. Hayley Lawson posted a season-high 49 assists, and Jen Chamblee and Molly Crenshaw each had 10 digs.

James Madison (6-7) placed four hitters in double figures, led by 15 from Kelly Turner. The Dukes also got 14 kills from Holly Wall to go along with 13 from Lindsay Callahan and 11 by Danielle Erb. Lauren Fanelli had 51 assists, and Wall (12) and Turner (10) each tallied double figures in digs to lead the defense.

Davidson completed its own comeback to secure the first set with a 25-23 win. After getting down early 7-3, the Wildcats took an early timeout, but continued to trail throughout most of the set. Davidson evened the score at 20 with a 5-1 run that included kills from Peele and Lupfer. The two teams traded points, until an error by the Dukes and two straight kills from Lupfer put Davidson ahead 24-22. Wall's putaway helped James Madison survive a set-point, but Jorden Benedict punched home the set-winner.

The Wildcats took an early 9-5 lead to open the second set, but the Dukes battled back to knot the score at 15. An 8-1 run opened up a 23-16 deficit for the Wildcats, who responded with eight straight scores to tie the set at 23. Callahan gave the Dukes the advantage, but Peele won the next point to force extra possessions. James Madison closed out the set with a kill from Wall, before a Wildcat hitting error evened the match with the 26-24 win.

Davidson jumped out to a 10-5 lead in the third set and closed with an 8-2 run for the decisive 25-15 win, but they could not carry the momentum into the next set. The Dukes took a 16-13 lead, but the 'Cats evened the score at 18 before three straight points put James Madison in control for good, en route to the 25-22 win to force a fifth set.

James Madison grabbed a 10-6 lead in the abbreviated fifth set, but a 5-0 run -featuring a pair of aces from Ariel Ley and a pair of kills by Lupfer, put Davidson ahead one ,11-10. Callahan tied the set, which would feature five ties the rest of the way until Turner gave the Dukes a match-point opportunity and a Fanelli ace sealed the win.

Davidson will close out tournament play at Winthrop with a 5 p.m. match against Gardner-Webb.

Gardner-Webb 3, Davidson 2

ROCK HILL, S.C. -- The Gardner-Webb Bulldogs defeated the Davidson Wildcats, 3-2 (25-22, 22-25, 26-24, 20-25, 16-14) in the team's tournament finale at the Wingate Classic at the Winthrop Coliseum Saturday evening.

Davidson (2-11) was led by Sarabeth Peele with 19 kills and 11 digs, and Erin Lupfer added 13 kills, touching double-digits for a second straight match. Madison and Jorden Benedict each had nine kills. Hayley Lawson totaled 51 assists, and Jennifer Chamblee led the defense with 13 digs.

Gardner-Webb (6-5) was paced by Molly Rhyne's 16 kills and Laura Wilcox's 13. Regina Feagin had 42 assists, and Evan Moffitt led the defense with 15 digs.

The Bulldogs took a 9-5 lead to open the match, but the 'Cats edged within one behind a 4-1 run. A kill by Madison Benedict and a Bulldog hitting error evened the score at 11, but Gardner-Webb won the next two points. Kills from Madison Benedict, Christine Perzinski and Lawson as part of a 4-0 stretch gave the Wildcats a 15-13 lead. A kill from Lupfer pushed the lead to three, 18-15, but Gardner-Webb closed with a 10-4 run to capture the set, 25-22.

Wilcox tallied three straight kills to help Gardner-Webb take a 6-3 lead to start the second set and force the Wildcats into a timeout. Davidson trailed 17-13 before putting together a 9-3 run, including three service aces from Perzinski, to take a 22-20 lead. Peele's putaway gave the Wildcats a set-point chance, and Lawson aced the set-winner to tie the match with the 25-22 win.

Davidson was leading 21-13 in the third set, before the Bulldogs used a 9-1 run to tie the score at 22. A service error by Gardner-Webb put Davidson ahead 23-22, but the Bulldogs won the next two points to get a set-point try. Davidson survived the set point on a kill from Peele, but Gardner-Webb won the next two points to go ahead 2-1 in the match with the 26-24 victory.

Trailing 9-7, the Wildcats opened up a 15-10 lead in the fourth set. The Bulldogs answered and pulled within one, 16-15, but Davidson would not surrender the lead in the 25-20 win to force the fifth and decisive set. The teams traded points in the fifth set, until Gardner-Webb opened a slight 10-8 lead. Davidson though rattled off five straight points and got a match-point chance on a Bulldog hitting error. A Wildcat service error gave the Bulldogs possession, and they won the next five straight points to capture the match with a 16-14 victory.

Davidson will travel to cross-county rival Charlotte Tuesday for a 7 p.m. match before beginning Southern Conference play at Wofford Saturday.

Charlotte 3, Western Carolina 0
Coastal Carolina 3, Western Carolina 0

CONWAY, S.C. - Western Carolina volleyball dropped a pair of matches to close out the Coastal Carolina Tournament. The Catamounts fell to Charlotte and host Coastal Carolina 3-0 each on Saturday.

Against Charlotte, Carrie Minogue led the club with six kills. Senior Liz Rondone recorded 11 digs.

In the final match of the tournament, Rebecca Stoltz topped the team with five kills against Coastal Carolina. Senior setter Katie Hennessey had 10 assists.

Western Carolina will travel to Athens, Georgia on Wednesday to take on the Bulldogs. Match time is set for 6 p.m.

Wake Forest 3, Appalachian State 0

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Appalachian State University volleyball could not withstand a tough Wake Forest squad Saturday afternoon, as the Mountaineers dropped a 3-0 decision to the host team, in the Apps second match of the Black and Gold Challenge. The loss is ASU's third-straight on the season, moving them to 3-9 overall, while Wake Forest notched its first win of the season, improving to 1-10 on the season.

Both squads traded points early in first set action, and the score was tied at ten all before Maggie Seeds and Maja Jechorek notched back to back kills to put Appalachian up 12-10. The Mountaineers continued with their impressive play, with Lauren Swecker downing a kill for ASU, and the Apps taking advantage of two WFU errors, pushing the Apps lead to 16-13.

Despite ASU up three, the Demon Deacons rallied what would be a fatal comeback for Appalachian. Wake Forest went on a 9-3 run, with Kristen White and Carlin Salmon mainly contributing to WFU's offense, to give the host squad a 22-19 advantage.

The three point cushion was large enough as an App error and two Wake Forest kills, gave WFU the 25-20, first set win.

Wake Forest came out strong in the second set and took an early 7-4 advantage with Andrea Beck and White tallying kills, to put the score at 12-7. Jechorek paced Appalachian's offense with two kills, trying to keep the Apps in the match.

Senior Cassie Engelgau recorded a service ace to cut the Demon Deacon's lead to just four at 19-15. Unfortunately for Appalachian, that would be as close as it would get, as WFU scored six more points, compared to the Apps two, to earn a 25-17 second set win.

ASU came out strong in the third and final set of play as the two squads traded points early on, with the score tied on two different occasions. A kill by Seeds knotted the score once more at 11 all, before Wake Forest turned on its offensive assault and the Demon Deacons went on an 8-2 run to make the score 19-13.

The run proved the difference-maker in the match, as Kadijah Fornah recorded an ace and two errors by the Mountaineers gave WFU the win.

Duke 3, Appalachian State 1

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Appalachian State University was unable to keep pace with ACC-power Duke Saturday evening, in the final match of the Black and Gold Challenge, hosted by Wake Forest. Despite taking a set from the Blue Devils and posting a strong effort, the Mountaineers came up short, falling 3-1. With the loss, the Black and Gold drop to 3-10 on the season, while Duke improves to a stout 11-2.

It was all Duke in the beginning of the first set, with the Blue Devils notching an early 6-2 advantage. Two attack errors by Maggie Seeds and kills by Rachael Moss earned DU the four point lead.

Things did not get much brighter for ASU who fell behind six points at the 13-7 mark.

Maja Jechorek, Becca Norris and Caroline Sedon tried to get things going for the Black and Gold, but it wasn't enough as the Apps found themselves in an eight point hole.

Duke's lead was too much, pushing the score to 22-14, with Moss and Sophia Dunworth pacing Duke's offense. A final kill by Dunworth and Becci Burling earned Duke the 25-16 win, putting Appalachian behind a set.

Appalachian picked up its play during second set action, as ASU grabbed an early three point lead. The Apps lead quickly evaporated however, as Duke went on a 6-0 run to come from behind and go up 10-8.

ASU tried to hang with a talented Duke squad, down just two points, but Duke's offensive assault would not rest, as four straight kills by Amanda Robertson, Moss and an error by Meghann Forshey gave Duke the commanding 18-11 lead.

The Mountaineers were unable to rally, despite Norris contributing on the offensive front, as Duke was too much and won the second set 25-19.

Despite being down two sets, ASU would not go away quietly. Although ASU found itself down 5-1, kills by Forshey, Norris and Kelly Rhein put the Black and Gold up 7-6.

The two teams continued to trade the lead, before two ASU attack erros gave the Blue Devils a 17-15 advantage. Appalachian rallied, with Jechorek slamming home two kills and senior Cassie Engelgau adding an ace to knot the match at 19 all.

Duke answered with two straight kills of their own to regain the lead, making the score 21-19, but strong play by Jechorek and Sedon, and a kill by Kelly Rhein made the score tied again at 23.

An attack error by Duke, coupled with a Forshey kill put the set away, giving the Apps a 26-24 third set victory.

Unfortunately for the Mountaineers, ASU's impressive play did not carry over into the fourth set as the Blue Devils came out on fire, going up 9-0, with offense coming from all over.

Appalachian finally got on the board with a kill by Sedon, and the Apps showed some life as Jechorek tallied back to back service aces, cutting the deficit to just six.

Duke would not let down however, and came away with the 25-14 fourth set win, and the 3-1 match victory.

For her efforts, senior Becca Norris was named to the all-tournament team, as she totaled 10 kills against the Blue Devils. It is the second all-tournament honors for the Franklin, N.C. native who also picked up honors at the Appalachian Invitational.

The Black and Gold look to rebound, as they return back to the High Country for a home contest against East Tennessee State, Tuesday September 22 at 7 p.m.