Davidson 3, The Citadel 0
CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Senior outside hitter Sarabeth Peele posted 20 kills and hit a personal season-high .486 to lead the Davidson Wildcat volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-16) sweep over The Citadel Bulldogs Sunday at McAlister Field House.
Peele reached 20 kills for the fourth time this season and, with 12 digs, her second double-double, to lead Davidson (12-9, 3-1 SoCon) to its third league win. Classmate Jorden Benedict added nine kills and three blocks, while younger sister Madison chipped in seven kills and a pair of blocks. Senior setter Hayley Lawson finished with 39 assists, nine digs and three blocks, while sophomore Molly Chamblee and senior Jennifer Chamblee each tallied 12 digs.
Tatum Jestila posted a team-best 10 kills and 14 digs to lead The Citadel (5-16, 0-6 SoCon), while Jessica Maas contributed eight. Meredith Mutispaugh and Alexa Dahlstrom finished with 16 and 13 assists, respectively. Kathryn Johnston also had 14 digs for the Bulldogs.
The Citadel turned an early 6-3 lead into a 10-5 advantage behind a pair of kills from Blaine McAllister to force Davidson into a timeout early. The Wildcats regrouped and used a 9-2 run to take a 14-12 lead on two kills from Peele and one each from junior opposite Erin Lupfer and Madison Benedict. Jestila won the next point for the Bulldogs, and the set continued to stay close until the Wildcats' late-game run. After Shannon Frain tied the score at 18, Lupfer got back-to-back points for Davidson. But the Bulldogs kept pace, trailing just 21-20 on a Wildcat hitting error. Davidson would close out the set with a 4-1 run, including points for Jorden Benedict and Peele, to win the 25-21 decision.
The Bulldogs started quick in the second set as well, taking a 6-2 lead on a pair of kills from McAllister. Trailing 8-4, the Wildcats, though, knotted the score with a 4-0 spurt with kills from Lawson and Madison Benedict. The Bulldogs answered, taking a 17-13 lead behind a 9-5 run to force the Wildcats into a timeout. Davidson got the set knotted at 20 with a 6-2 run, including four straight serves from Jorden Benedict and a pair of kills by Peele. The teams traded points to tie the set at 21 but Davidson won the next two on a putaway from Peele and a Bulldog error to pull ahead 23-21. Maas put The Citadel within one, but Peele answered to give Davidson a set-point try at 24-22. Maas helped the Bulldogs stay alive, but the Wildcats won the set on a Citadel hitting error, 25-23, to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
After the break, Davidson jumped out to a dominant 10-2 lead, and The Citadel never recovered as the Wildcats rolled to the 25-16 win for the match. Peele had five of her 20 kills in the final set, while both Benedicts added three.
Davidson will play its third straight road match when it travels to Furman Tuesday for a 6 p.m. match. The Wildcats will then host three straight at Belk Arena: Elon, UNCG and Georgia Southern
Chattanooga 3, Appalachian State 1
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - After capturing its first Southern Conference victory against Western Carolina, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga volleyball team used that momentum to down Appalachian State, 3-1(17-25, 25-14, 25-13, 25-23), at Maclellan Gym on Sunday. The Lady Mocs dropped the first set, but the team used an all-around defensive effort totaling 83 digs to continually frustrate the Mountaineers in the second and third, before finishing them off in the fourth.
Seniors right side Jessica Scott and setter Bailee Chatain and sophomores outside Heather Parman and libero Paula Passmore each recorded atleast 10 kills in the evening. Parman and Chastain each registered 18 with Passmore leading the way with 19, while Scott added 11 and sophomore Kirsten Beasley had nine.
The Lady Mocs tied a season-high with 11 block on the night with senior Courtney Barnes pacing the match with six, while sophomore Ellie Kuhn recorded five. Chastain added three and sophomore outside Meagan Ernd and Scott had two apiece.
Chastain notched her sixth double-double of the season registering 39 assists and was effective in spreading the attack out to five different Lady Mocs making it difficult for Appalachian State to defend. Barnes totaled 12 kills, while Parman notched a double-double with 11 kills and Scott and Ernd each added nine. Kuhn recorded five kills along with Chastain.
Chattanooga (7-15, 2-4 SoCon) compiled a .217 attacking percentage on 52 kills and just 17 mistakes. Appalachian State (13-6, 4-2 SoCon) came out firing in the first set totaling 17 kills on three errors, but the Mountaineers committed 11 errors in each of the next two frames.
The Lady Mocs notched a match-high 17 kills on their way to the victory in the fourth set. There were 16 ties and six lead changes throughout the match with a majority of them, 10 ties and four lead changes, occurring in the fourth frame.
Appalachian State was paced offensively by Maggie Seeds and Ana Wagner, who each totaled 11 kills, while libero Courtney Rhein led the match with 25 digs.
In the first set, the two teams battled through the first 11 points as Appalachian State had a one-point advantage following a kill by Ernd. The Mountaineers rattled off six-straight points to take a 16-8 lead and stretched it to 24-12.
With Appalachian State serving for set point, the Lady Mocs continued to battle scoring three-consecutive points on kills by Barnes and Chastain before the Mountaineers closed out the set, 25-17.
Chattanooga rallied to a 11-3 advantage in the second set on kills by Beasley, Ernd (2) and Scott (3), but it was propelled by four Appalachian State mistakes, one on a block from Barnes and Ernd.
From there, the Mountaineers came within five, 13-8, after scoring on four-straight points, but the Lady Mocs would go on to take the set, 25-14 ,on a kill by Kuhn. Chattanooga notched four blocks in the frame establishing a presence at the net.
The third set would start close as both teams matched each other point-for-point through the first 11 rallies. Chattanooga would add to its advantage on a kill by Barnes, 13-8. The Lady Mocs would close the frame, 25-14, on a 11-4 run that saw two service aces by Beasley and four kills by Kuhn.
A battle to the finish came out in the fourth set as the teams battled through the first 39 points and Chattanooga had a slight 20-19 lead on a kill by Parman. The Lady Mocs would push their advantage to three, 24-21, on a kills by Barnes and Parman (2), but the Mountaineers connected on two kills by Wagner cutting the deficit to one. A service error ended the match, 25-23, as the Lady Mocs celebrated their second-straight victory.
Chattanooga is off the Charleston, S.C. next weekend to battle the Citadel on Saturday at 2 p.m. and take on the College of Charleston on Sunday at 2 p.m. The Lady Mocs return to Maclellan Gym on Oct. 23-24 to battle Wofford and Furman with both matches beginning at 2 p.m. Continuing with its tough road trip, Appalachian heads to Greenville, S.C. to play defending SoCon South Division champion Furman. The match is slated to start at 2 p.m. in the Paladin's Alley Gym.