Georgia Southern 3, Western Carolina 1
STATESBORO, Ga. - Parker Small uncorked 18 kills to lead Georgia Southern over Western Carolina 3-1 (25-13, 25-15, 18-25, 25-20) Friday night at the Ramsey Center. Four Eagles posted double-digit dig performances to improve Georgia Southern to 17-7 overall and 8-1 in Southern Conference play.
Bethany Sanford and Hannah Nelson combined to add 17 kills to Small's 18, while Kate Van Dyke reeled in 46 assists. Ashley Roe posted a team-best 17 digs followed by Sanford with 13, Van Dyke with 11 and Lauren LaRocque with 10. Sarah Gildersleeve picked up a team-high five blocks.
Georgia Southern led 12-6 following a block assist from Van Dyke and Gildersleeve in the opening frame and closed out the set with a 25-13 win. A Sanford kill sparked a late 4-0 Eagle run that handed Georgia Southern set point at 24-12. The Catamounts fought off the first set point before Small capped the frame with her sixth kill of the set.
The second set saw an equally strong offensive output from the Eagles as Small led the attack with five kills. A pair of kills from the junior put the Eagles in front 12-6, forcing WCU to call a timeout. Small's fourth kill pushed the Catamounts to call their second timeout at 21-14 as the Eagles closed out the second set with a 25-15 win.
Western Carolina controlled the majority of the third set, climbing out to a 10-5 lead. Georgia Southern pulled to within two points at 16-14, but the Catamounts continued to widen their margin, taking set three, 25-18, to move the overall match to 2-1.
The Eagles rebounded in the fourth frame to seal the conference win with a 25-20 victory. Small led the attack with five kills on five swings for a perfect hitting percentage. Georgia Southern jumped out to a 9-4 lead, but Western Carolina narrowed its deficit to one point at 13-12. WCU tried kept the set close, but the Eagles closed out the frame with kills from Nelson and Lauren Claybaugh (Danville, Calif.) for the win.
Georgia Southern closes out this three-match road trip at Appalachian State on Sunday, Oct. 24. First serve is slated for 2 p.m. The Catamounts return to action on Sunday, Oc.t. 24 when they play host to Davidson in the team's annual "Dig Pink" match at 3 p.m.
Elon 3, The Citadel 0
ELON, N.C. - The Elon volleyball team got off to a winning start in newly renovated Alumni Gym on Friday night by defeating The Citadel, 3-0 (26-24, 25-16, 25-18). The Elon defense held The Citadel to a .069 hitting percentage and the Phoenix totaled eight team blocks on the night. With the win, Elon moves to 14-11 on the season and 6-3 in Southern Conference play. The Citadel drops to 5-19 and remains winless in SoCon play.
Junior Caroline Lemke led the Elon offensive attack with a .381 attack percentage, while senior Sarah Schermerhorn led the team in kills with 12.
Senior Lauren Copenhagen and junior Traci Stewart directed the defensive side of the ball with 16 and 15 digs, respectively. Schermerhorn recorded one solo block and four assisted for a total of five on the night.
The first set started off with a 12-9 Bulldog advantage until a kill by Lemke started the Phoenix on a short run to pull the score to 12-11. With the score still at a one point visitor advantage, a Bulldog error and a kill by Schermerhorn gave Elon its first lead of the night at 16-14. The Citadel tied the match several times, but the Phoenix were able to withstand the Bulldog surge and maintain the lead and earn the first set victory, 26-24.
In the second set, the Phoenix jumped out to a 7-2 lead on the serve of sophomore Ali Deatsch and senior Traci Stewart. Elon would lead by as many as nine until the Bulldogs went on a four-point run to pull the score to 22-16. The Phoenix scored the last three points and won the set, 25-16, with a kill from Lemke to take a 2-0 lead.
The third set began with Elon pulling out to a 5-1 lead once again on the serve of Deatsch and Stewart. The Bulldogs closed the Phoenix lead to just three points at 9-6 before the Phoenix picked up the pace and pulled ahead 14-9. With the score at a 17-12 Elon advantage, a kill by Schermerhorn moved the Phoenix ahead 18-12 and forced the Bulldogs to call a timeout. Elon was able to keep its lead after the brief break and won the set on a kill from Stewart, 25-18, to earn the sweep.
Elon will return to action tomorrow against College of Charleston for its fourth annual Dig Pink match. The match will begin at 7 p.m. in Alumni Gym. All fans are encouraged to wear pink. The Bulldogs continue their road swing with a Saturday evening match against UNCG set to begin at 7 p.m.
College of Charleston 3, UNCG 1
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Junior Sarah Havel totaled 13 kills and six blocks as the College of Charleston volleyball team won their fifth consecutive conference match with a 3-1 victory over the UNC Greensboro Spartans Friday night (25-19, 17-25, 25-21, 25-18).
Havel wasn't the only offensive weapons for the Cougars (19-5, 8-1) as seniors Ginny Phillips and Whitney Russell registered double-digit kills with 15 and 10 respectively.
In the first set the Cougars forced the Spartans (17-7, 5-4) into eight attack errors. For the match CofC used a balanced defensive attack as three different players had at least 10 digs.
After struggling in the third set the Cougars came back from the break refocused and determined to play at a higher level. CofC jumped out to a 6-1 lead on one of four service aces from Havel and never looked back, going up 2-1 with a 25-21 set victory.
The fourth set was a battle, but the Cougars led the whole way, going up 5-2 after forcing a Spartan attack error. Four different athletes had at least four kills in the set and as a team the Cougars hit .306. Although UNCG pulled within one point at 13-12, it was CofC who had the energy late as they used a 12-5 run to win the set and take the match.
Senior Cole Dawley registered her 10th double-double in her last 11 matches with 42 assists and 10 digs.
The Cougars resume play tomorrow with another SoCon match on the road as they travel to Elon for a 7p.m. contest. The Spartans will wrap up Dig Pink weekend on Saturday as they host The Citadel for a 7 p.m. match in Fleming Gymnasium.