Davidson 3, Mercer 0
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Sophomore outside hitter Caroline Brown and junior setter Ariel recorded career highs to lead the Davidson Wildcat volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-19) shutout of the Mercer Bears in both team's season-opener Friday night in the opening match of the Winthrop Classic.
Brown finished with 15 kills on 33 attempts to lead Davidson (1-0), bettering her previous career high of nine against Georgia Southern on November 9 last season. Ley, whose previous career best of 22 assists was against Stetson on August 28, 2010, finished with a double-double of 39 assists and 10 digs. Senior outside hitter Christine Perzinski and sophomore middle hitter Tindall Sewell each finished with nine kills.
Mercer (0-1) was led by Amiee Frutchey's nine kills, and Monica Sanchez finished with 17 assists. Charlotte Harris tallied 10 digs to pace the Bears defense.
"The team performed the way they have trained all preseason," head coach Chris Willis said. "It was a total group effort. We couldn't have asked for anything more."
In the opening set, the Wildcats busted up an 8-8 tie with a 9-2 run to take a 17-10 lead. Sewell, Brown, Perzinski and sophomore Taylor Pisel each recorded a kill during the spurt. The teams traded points until Davidson put away three straight on back-to-back kills from Sewell and Brown and a Bear hitting error to pull ahead 23-14. Senior middle hitter Madison Benedict's second kill of the set lifted the Wildcats to a 25-16 victory.
The second set featured nine ties before Davidson used a late run to take a 2-0 lead in the match. After starting as a back-and-forth affair, the 'Cats look a slight lead, 7-5, on a kill by Perzinski. Four Davidson errors put the Bears ahead 9-8, but Davidson regrouped after a timeout and rattled off four straight points to reclaim the 12-9 advantage. Mercer knotted the set again with two kills from Frutchey and a service ace from Sanchez, and the score stayed tied until Davidson took a 19-16 lead on kills from Benedict and Perzinski and an ace by Benedict. The Bears won the next point on a serving error, but would get no closer than 19-17. The 'Cats closed with a 6-3 run to take the second set, 25-20.
Davidson jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the final set behind kills from Sewell and Brown before falling behind 9-11 on the Bear's 9-4 run. But after a timeout, the Wildcats took complete control behind a 10-0 run, featuring a pair of kills from Brown and one each for Perzinski and Sewell. Mercer responded with their own, winning seven of the next 10 points to narrow the gap to 22-18, but Davidson's lead held. The Wildcats went 3-1 to close the match, and Sewell put away the winner for the 25-19 victory.
Chattanooga 3, Northwestern State 1
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The much anticipated debut of head coach Travis Filar with the Chattanooga Mocs Volleyball team was a come-from-behind, 3-1 (19-25, 25-20, 25-22, 26-24), victory over Northwestern (La.) State at the Southern Miss Invitational on Friday afternoon. Junior right side Christina Teter led the way offensively totaling 12 kills and a .407 attacking pct., while sophomore outside added 11 at the Green Reed Coliseum.
"We were very excited and ready to play a different opponent," said head coach Travis Filar. "I really felt that our kids settled down after the first set, played and fought really hard. Our focus going into the match was playing every point the same no matter what the score was, whether we were winning or losing, and to move on quicky the next point."
The offensive attack was run by sophomore setter Bridget Camacho (Cumming, Ga.), who recorded 36 assists. Junior outside Heather Parman notched nine kills for the Mocs.
Chattanooga's defense typically starts with strong play in the back row, but the Mocs blocked down 16 Lady Demon attacks from the front row, which ties the highest total from last season. Leading the way was sophomore Aneisha Christie with eight total blocks including five in the final frame. Senior Ellie Kuhn and Teter tallied seven blocks each.
"I was really pleased with our blocking," said Filar. "I thought that Aneisha and Teter did great jobs closing the blocks. Ellie did a good job in setting the block. I was definitely not expecting to block 16 balls in the first match."
A complete team effort was used as all nine players that participated for Chattanooga recorded at least one dig with junior libero Paula Passmore pacing the team with 28. Freshman defensive specialist Melissa Green registered 11 digs in her first collegiate match, while Teter and Camacho each had nine digs and freshman Kasey Talley and Parman added eight each.
With discipline as a primary focus for the Mocs under coach Filar, Chattanooga limited its mistakes to at most eight in a single set and took advantage of 39 errors committed by Northwestern State.
The first point of the 2011 volleyball season went to the Mocs on a kill by Parman. The Lady Demons then jumped out to a 10-5 advantage before Chattanooga rallied to within two, 15-13, converting on two consecutive mistakes. An 8-2 run by Northwestern State put it in control of the first set notching a 25-19 victory.
After four quick points for the Lady Demons in the second set, coach Filar inserted Talley into the service rotation as Chattanooga rolled off four-straight points knotting the score at six. Northwestern State, then, built a 19-16 lead before the Mocs responded with a 9-2 run to even the match at one.
Following the 10-minute intermission, the Mocs took advantage of 13 mistakes from the Lady Demons and took a 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-22 victory. Chattanooga tallied points at crucial times.
With Passmore on the service line in the third frame, Chattanooga scored four-straight points, but the Lady Demons came back to tie the match at eight. The back-and-forth set saw the Mocs fall behind 24-21 before a match-winning rally as Parman had consecutive kills to ignite the Chattanooga to the 26-24 victory.
Elon 3, Hampton 0
Elon 3, Florida Gulf Coast 2
DURHAM, N.C. - The Elon volleyball team opened the season with two wins on the first day of the Hilton RTP/NCCU Tournament today, August 26, inside McDougald-McLendon Gymnasium. In the morning match, the Phoenix defeated Hampton 3-0 (25-23, 25-16, 25-9) before battling down to the wire against Florida Gulf Coast in a 3-2 (25-19, 25-17, 22-25, 18-25, 15-12) victory in the afternoon.
"I was impressed with team's toughness today," said head Elon volleyball coach Mary Tendler. "They pulled out the first match against Hampton this morning and the second match against Florida Gulf Coast this afternoon. Both teams were very competitive and we feel fortunate to come out 2-0 after first day. It was nice to see a lot of players play and be productive today and we anticipate the same thing tomorrow."
Junior Carly Ledbetter recorded 21 kills and seven aces in the two matches. Freshman Chanelle Smith finished the day with 17 kills, while senior Megan McMahon tallied 58 assists. Junior Ali Deatsch led the defensive effort with 29 total digs.
In the first set against Hampton, Elon jumped out to an 8-5 lead, but a 4-1 run by the Lady Pirates tied the set at nine-all. The contest remained close at 17-all before a three straight points by the Phoenix made it a 20-17 game. Hampton kept it close and eventually claimed a 22-21 lead, but back-to-back kills by Lemke and Ledbetter put the Phoenix up 23-22 and forced the Lady Pirates to call their first timeout of the game. Out of the timeout, Hampton tied the set at 23-all before kills from Ledbetter and Stewart gave Elon the 25-23 first-set win.
Down 6-3 in the second set, Elon rallied to take a 11-8 advantage. The Lady Pirates fought hard against Elon, making it 16-14, until the Phoenix caught fire and scored five unanswered points to take a commanding 21-14 lead. Hampton started a two-point run to make it 21-16, but Elon responded with the next four points, including an ace by Ledbetter, to register a 25-16 win and take a 2-0 match lead.
Elon went ahead 6-1 early in the third set, courtesy of two kills by Ledbetter and one from senior Traci Stewart. Hampton pulled within five to make it 10-5, but many miscues by the Lady Pirates and kills by Stewart and junior Celia Rose Eddy helped the Phoenix claim a 15-8 advantage. Eight straight points by Elon moved the score to 23-8 and sealed the win. The Phoenix ended the third set, 25-9, and first match of the year with a kill from freshman Kris Harris.
In the first set against Florida Gulf Coast, the two teams jockeyed for position until Elon claimed a one-point advantage, 13-12. The Phoenix went on a 3-1 run to take a 16-13 advantage and force the Eagles to call a timeout. Out of the timeout, FGCU won the next point to bring the set within two, 16-14. However, a kill by Ledbetter put Elon back up three and spurred a three-point run to make it 19-14. The Phoenix continued its first-set control and held on for a 25-19 win.
After falling behind the Eagles, 9-4, the Phoenix rallied back to tie the set at 11-all. The points went back and forth until FGCU took firm a 20-17 lead late. The Eagles would eventually win, 25-17, to even the match at one-all.
Early in the third set, Ledbetter tallied three kills in a four-point span to help Elon take a 4-2 lead. The set remained tight with neither team taking more than a two-point lead until the Eagles went up 24-22 and finished with a 25-22 win.
With the match on the line, three early aces by senior Nickie Halbert and Ledbetter gave the Phoenix a slight 4-1 advantage. After the Elon lead became four, 8-4, FGCU tied it up at nine-all. Ledbetter recorded her fourth ace of the match to put the Phoenix back up by two, 13-11. With the score knotted at 16-all, the Phoenix registered five unanswered points to take a 21-16 lead. The maroon and gold went on to score four of the final six points to win the fourth set, 25-18, and send the match into a deciding fifth set.
The fifth and final set took the tone of the rest of the match, remaining tight until the Phoenix took a three-point lead, 8-5. But the Eagles battled back to tie the set at 10-all. With the score tied at 11-all, the Phoenix went on a three-point run, which was capped by a block by Lemke, to take a 14-11 lead. Elon sealed the deal on the next point to make it 15-12, claiming its second victory of the tournament.
The Citadel 3, Bethune-Cookman 1
The Citadel 3, Savannah State 0
CHARLESTON, S.C. - First-year Citadel Head Coach Amir Khaledi guided the Bulldogs Volleyball team to pair of victories over Bethune-Cookman, 3-1 (25-16, 25-21, 23-25, 25-15) and Savannah State, 3-0 (25-12, 25-7, 25-11) and in the process tied a mark set by the 2008 squad as the only team to start off 2-0 in program history.
In a pair of matches held at McAlister Field House, after Hurricane Irene forced the cancellation of a tournament set to be held at Hampton University, The Citadel dominated the competition behind solid performances by Alexa Dahlstrom, Rachael Farrell, Jessica Maxwell and Kaona Mercer.
"Even though the tournament was originally canceled, playing against these two teams gave us a chance to see where we were after a strong preseason," said Khaledi. "The styles of Bethune-Cookman and Savannah State gave us solid opponents that will help in preparing for upcoming matches. Individually, Kaona Mercer and Rachael Farrell had solid offensive outings for our team, while Emily Dalton was a spark on the defensive end."
The Citadel vs. Bethune-Cookman, 3-1 (25-16, 25-21, 23-25, 25-15)
In the opening game of the session, The Citadel was powered by a 15-kill, seven-dig outing from junior Kaona Mercer. Mercer finished with a .235 attack percentage and paired with Rachael Farrell (11 kills) to give the Bulldogs a decisive 45-31 edge in kills. Outside hitters Kathryn Johnston (seven kills) and Cassie Uribe (six digs) were also instrumental on the Bulldogs front row.
Junior Alexa Dahlstrom was a catalyst for The Citadel offensive attack with 31 assists, while Farrell (13 digs) and Mercer (seven digs) highlighted the back row performance. Khaledi's defense also got a lift from Dahlstrom and Mercer up front, as they each recorded with two solo blocks.
The Citadel set the tempo early by grabbing a 10-3 lead in the opening set and maintained an eight-point edge for much of the game, before closing out the 25-16 win. Bethune-Cookman found its offensive rhythm in the second set, which endured 10 ties, before a Dahlstrom kill gave the Dogs 21-20 edge. The Citadel closed by scoring five of the next seven points to win, 25-21.
After a hard fought third set, that went the way of the Lady Tigers (25-23), the Bulldogs rallied to finish the match strong. Led by the combination of Johnston's four kills and Mercer's four digs, The Citadel broke an 8-8 tie on a Uribe kill and never looked back. Down the stretch the Dogs forced eight errors and held Bethune-Cookman to just eight points to clinch the victory, 25-15.
The Citadel vs. Savannah State, 3-0 (25-12, 25-7, 25-11)
Jessica Maxwell recorded a match-high nine kills to finish with an impressive .667 attack percentage, as The Citadel improved to 15-1 all-time against Savannah State. The tandem of Johnston (seven kills), Farrell (six kills) and Amanda Rudnik (six kills) also came through with solid outings. A total of 10 players notched at least one kill in the match, as the Bulldogs held a 45-15 edge in kills.
Dahlstrom dished out 32 assists for The Citadel, who posted a .521 hitting percentage in the three-game sweep. Defensively, Emily Dalton (five digs), Farrell (four digs) and Johnston (four digs) kept Savannah State from being able to find its offense.
The two teams went back-and-forth in the opening set before five straight points with Johnston at serve pushed the lead to 13-7, in favor of The Citadel. Three kills by Uribe down the stretch, combined with five Savannah State errors, made for the 25-12 final.
Dalton's service game gave the Dogs a 6-0 lead early in the second set, and combined with four kills from Maxwell and Rudnik, The Citadel won in dominating fashion, 25-7.
The Citadel closed out the match with a decisive 25-11 set, highlighted by Amanda Rudnik, who gave the Bulldogs a 7-2 in the early going. At one point of the match, the Dogs lineup featured freshmen Haley Corson, Mallory Moore, and Amanda Rudnik, Janiece Judkins, Lauren Hurt along with sophomore setter Erin Bucheri.
Appalachian State 3, N.C. State 1
BOONE, N.C. - Behind a career-best 31 kills from senior Anna Wagner, Appalachian State University volleyball earned a 3-1 victory over NC State in the season opener for both teams. The Mountaineers tallied a 25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 25-23 win in front of 738 raucous fans at the Appalachian Invitational.
Wagner started the night strong with eight kills in the first set, including ASU's final four points in the opening round. She finished the night with 31 kills on 52 attempts for a .462 hitting percentage. The senior added eight digs, three blocks and a pair of aces.
The Apps started quickly in the first set and jumped out to a 12-4 lead before the Wolfpack (0-1) clawed back within three points at 17-14. Solid serving from Lauren Brown, Kelly Rhein, and freshman Lauren Gray helped the Apps regain a comfortable advantage to cruise to the 25-19 win.
ASU (1-0) never trailed in the second set and after a tight 12-10 score, Appalachian scored three-straight points and held off a late NCSU rally for another 25-19 win.
NC State then battled back after the intermission for a win in the third set to keep their hopes alive. Neither team led by more than three points throughout the hard-fought set, but a pair of consecutive ASU attack errors allowed the Pack to break a 23-23 stalemate to earn the win.
The fourth and final set was equally close, featuring nine ties and four lead changes. The Mountaineers battled back from their largest deficit of the match at 15-20 with a furious 10-3 rally to the finish, punctuated by a pair of Wagner kills and another from classmate Alison Blasingame.
Kelly Rhein joined Wagner in double figures with 10 kills, and nearly completed a double-double with nine digs. The senior hit .269 on the night with a block. Blasingame added nine kills on 20 attacks with three digs and a block of her own.
Kasey Sauls converted a double-double with 50 assists and 10 digs to accompany a pair of kills and a block. Courtney Rhein led the squad with 20 digs and six assists.
In her collegiate debut, Gray started and tallied five kills and five blocks on the front row.
Margaret Salata led NCSU with 15 kills while two of her teammates reached double figures in digs. The Apps out-hit the ACC foe .264 to .218 in the match and owned a 4-2 advantage on service aces. The Wolfpack out-blocked the Apps 10-6.
Tournament round robin play concludes on Saturday, as ASU faces Kennesaw State at 12:30 p.m. and Charlotte at 7 p.m.
Samford 3, Troy 0
Samford 3, UNC Asheville 0
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford Bulldogs (2-0) started their 2011 season in impressive fashion, coming away with two 3-0 victories in day one of the Samford/UAB Invitational. In the afternoon, Samford beat Troy (25-23, 25-13, 25-19) and then swept UNC Asheville in the night game (25-11, 25-15, 25-18).
"I'm very happy with the first day of the 2011 season," said Head Coach Derek Schroeder. "Our team dynamic and chemistry is incredible and it helped us through tough spots and propelled us when we were rolling.
"I'm proud of any number of individuals but today was a team-first effort and it showed!"
2010 second team All-SoCon honoree Elizabeth Neisler dominated the outside, notching 13 kills against Troy and 16 against UNC Asheville. Katie Murphy and Lauren Hutchinson came up big up front as well, earning 12 kills against Troy and UNC Asheville, respectively. The Bulldogs also guarded the net well, out-blocking their opponents 19-6 in assisted blocks. Alexis Bauer had double-digit digs in both matches, taking 17 against Troy and 14 against UNC Asheville.
Game One: Samford 3, Troy 0 (25-23, 25-13, 25-19)
The Bulldogs took an early lead in the first set, jumping ahead 5-0 courtesy of two errors by Troy, kills by Michaela Reesor and Hutchinson and a service ace by Casey Garvey. The Trojans and Bulldogs fought back-and-forth, drawing even at six different points in the match. Tied 23-23, sophomore Murphy came up big with back-to-back kills to seal the early lead for Samford.
The Bulldogs controlled the pace for most of the second set, with Samford not letting Troy draw any closer than 4 points all set. With the Bulldogs leading 13-10, they went on a 12-2 run which saw Chelsi Carter earn three kills and Murphy earn two. Samford went into the final set up 2-0.
The beginning of the third set was a back-and-forth affair, with teams trading points at nearly every service. The match finally opened up at the 16-16 mark with Samford playing tall at the net. Neisler, Hutchinson, Murphy and Reesor all earned blocks down the stretch and forced four attack errors by Troy, including the final two points, to close out the 3-0 victory.
Game Two: Samford 3, UNC Asheville 0 (25-11, 25-15, 25-18)
Samford didn't waste any time in their second game, setting a dominating pace against UNC Asheville in the first set. Garvey served five in a row to start, helped by two kills by Hutchinson and a kill and a block by Neisler. UNC Asheville earned scattered points throughout the set, but the hard-hitting duo of Neisler and Hutchinson never relented. Up 23-11, Carter sealed the deal with back-to-back kills to end the set.
The second set started much like the first, with Garvey taking eight consecutive services with Neisler and Hutchinson earning two kills apiece. Asheville started closing the gap, narrowing the Bulldogs' lead to 11-6. Samford again surged in the latter half of the set thanks do great play up front, eventually winning 25-15.
The trend continued in the final set, with Samford jumping ahead 5-0 at the start. Asheville would not go down without a fight however, clawing back in small rallies to narrow the lead. The Bulldogs earned three consecutive points to bring their lead to 17-10 and then again to 22-14. Asheville took three straight to narrow the lead to 22-17, but Samford closed it out with kills by Neisler, newcomer Erika Devaughn and an Asheville attack error to seal the victory.
VCU 3, College of Charleston 1
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - VCU captured a 3-1 decision against College of Charleston in both teams' opening match of the 2011 season at the Mortar Board Premier at Purdue University.
The Cougars were led by the strong hitting of senior Elyse Chubb. Chubb finished with 11 kills and an attacking percentage of .231 to go along with three total blocks. Classmate Sarah Havel also tallied three blocks and seven kills, while sophomore Madelyn McGinnis delivered 11 kills. Starting the year as the team's setter, sophomore Kallie McKown set new career highs in assists (30) and digs (12). Junior Emily Shelton led the team with 18 digs from her libero position.
VCU relied on the attacks of Kristen Boyd and Jessica Ojukwu to take the first, third and fourth sets. Boyd tallied a game-high 16 kills while Ojukwu notched 15. Three different Ram players reached double digits in digs with Ojukwu (20), Cecilia Aragao (12) and Amanda Love (10).
"I thought we competed well today," head coach Jason Kepner said. "We tried to rely on our ball control, but VCU outdid us on that today. I was a little disappointed in how we handled their serve. We made some errors that made it easier for them. We had our opportunities to send it to five sets but just couldn't get it there."
The first set started with both teams trading points with efficient attacks. However, the Rams notched seven straight points to break open a 5-5 score. VCU's Boyd contributed two kills and a block in the run. Boyd finished the set with four kills as VCU won 25-14.
The Cougars battled back in the second set, responding to a 10-5 deficit with a 7-2 run to tie the game at 12. The Cougars did not trail again in the set. After a timeout with the score tied at 20, the College of Charleston came out scoring four straight points, punctuated by a Chubb kill. The Rams battled back, but Chubb delivered the winning point to give the Cougars a 25-23 set win.
VCU opened up the third set with a 9-1 run to turn a 6-6 tie into a 15-7 Rams lead. The Cougars responded to bring it to 17-13, but the Rams rallied for a 25-15 set win. Ojukwu and Boyd combined for eight kills as the Rams compiled a .345 attacking percentage for the set.
VCU jumped out to a 17-13 lead midway through the fourth set, but the Cougars continued to hang tough, bringing the margin to 19-17 after Havel scored a kill and combined with Madelyn McGinnis for a momentum-changing block.
After two errors from VCU brought the Cougars closer, Lizzie Theesfeld delivered a big kill to make the score 24-23. A tense and long volley resulted in an error from VCU's Ojukwu and the match continued.
Chubb powered through with a kill from right to left to tie the score at 25, but the Rams scored the next two points to take the set and the match.
After the match, the Mortar Board committee honored players from each team for scholarship and service. Chubb earned the Top Scholar Award, Havel won Most Improved Scholar and senior Hayley Harrell was honored with the Community Service Award.
The Cougars return to Purdue's Intercollege Athletic Facility on Saturday, Aug. 27, for a noon match against Baylor.
USC Upstate 3, Western Carolina 0
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Despite a nine kill effort from senior Carrie Minogue, the Catamounts (0-1) dropped a three-set decision to USC Upstate (1-0), 19-25, 23-25, 17-25 on Friday afternoon in the opening match of the regular season and the Marriott Cavalier Classic.
"We had some definite bright spots this first match, but we also have a lot to work on," said first-year head coach Karen Glover.
"Carrie did an excellent job at the net, leading us both offensively with nine kills and defensively with six blocks."
In the first set, Western Carolina jumped on the board first after a kill by senior Abbey Scroggins off of the Brittany Lysik set. The rest of the set would remain close with neither team gaining an advantage of more than three points until the Spartans of Upstate went up 20-16, before taking the first set 25-19.
After falling behind 17-10 in the second set, the Catamounts came storming back to get within two of the Spartans, down 20-18, from points by Minogue and freshman newcomer Jordan Timmerman. WCU got within one of Upstate's 24 points, dropping the last point to go down 2-0.
The Purple and Gold streaked to a 5-1 lead to start the final set before hitting a match low 7% in the third. The Catamounts dropped the third set 25-17.
Defensively, Western Carolina sophomore libero Morgan Cochran posted 16 digs, while Jordan Timmermann had three block assists and 12 digs.
Senior Abbey Scroggins was also able to log a career-high 10 digs. Her previous best of six took place against Elon during the 2009 season. Becky Stoltz added eight kills and eight digs
In her first match at setter, Brittany Lysik paced WCU with 29 out of the team's 33 assists.
Western Carolina will return to action tomorrow as the Catamounts continue play in the Marriott Cavalier Classic on the campus of the University of Virginia against Western Michigan at 11 a.m. and the host Virginia Cavaliers at 7 p.m. Live stats for both of Saturday's matches can be found at CatamountSports.com.
#17 Duke 3, Furman 1
DURHAM, N.C. - Furman won the opening set against #17 Duke before the Blue Devils rallied back to take a 3-1 (23-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-15) victory over the Paladins at the Duke Volleyball Invitational Friday evening in Durham, N.C., in the season opener for both teams. Senior Kelly Kirby recorded a triple-double for the Paladins, tallying 19 assists, 12 digs, and 10 kills.
The teams remained closely matched at the beginning of the first set, then Furman won five straight points and built a 17-11 advantage. After the Blue Devils cut the lead to one point, the Paladins took three consecutive points for a 21-17 lead. Again Duke rallied, winning four-straight points to tie the match at 21 apiece. Furman capitalized off two Duke errors for a 23-21 advantage, then kills by Kirby and junior Chandler Ambrester gave the Paladins a 25-23 victory.
Furman led throughout the second set, but Duke tied the match at 22, then won then won three out of the next four points for a 25-23 win to tie the match at one set apiece going into the break. The teams were tied at 7 to open the third set before Duke won five straight points for a 12-7 advantage and never looked back, winning the third set 25-20.
In the fourth set, the teams traded leads before the Paladins settled into a 10-7 lead. The Blue Devils then went on a 16-3 run to assume a 23-13 advantage. A kill by Kirby cut into the deficit, but two kills by Amanda Robertson sealed the 25-15 victory for Duke.
Junior Natalie Braun fell one kill shy of a triple-double, recording nine kills, a team-high 23 assists, and 13 digs, while Ambrester also recorded a double-double after leading the Paladins with 16 kills and adding 12 digs. Junior Caroline Adams led the team with a .333 attack percentage, while senior Alexis Shaffer and sophomore Christina Dorismond each collected four block assists in the match-up. Senior Carolyn Nicoletti led the Furman defensive attack with 21 digs.
Duke (1-0) was led by Christiana Gray, who hit .526 with 10 kills and four block assists. Robertson and Jeme Obeime each added 13 kills, and Ali McCurdy posted 24 digs. Kellie Catanach tallied a team-high 51 assists in the victory.
Stephen F. Austin 3, Georgia Southern 2
South Dakota State 3, Georgia Southern 2
STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Volleyball team (0-2) opened the 2011 season with a pair of losses in the SpringHill Suites Invitational. The Eagles opened both matches with a first-set win, but ultimately fell 3-2 in a pair of hard-fought losses to Stephen F. Austin and South Dakota State.
Bethany Sanford posted double-digit kills in both matches including a career-high 26 kills in game two. Kate Van Dyke posted 56 assists in the second match along with 16 digs. Lauren LaRocque posted a team season-high 29 digs in the second contest of the day.
Stephen F. Austin (1-0) won the first contest 3-2 behind eight kills from Sabrina Burns and Katzy Randall. Lady Jacks Leslie Jackson and Monica Pannone added seven kills each. Georgia Southern got double-digit kill efforts from Sanford, Parker Small and Hannah Nelson while Van Dyke posted 44 assists and nine digs. However, 11 reception errors and 25 attack errors proved the difference in a well-contested match.
The Eagles won sets one and four, but dropped the deciding fifth set 15-11 to the Lady Jacks. GSU opened the first match of the year with an 25-11 first-set victory, but quickly fell behind 2-1 after Stephen F. Austin won sets two and three 25-16 and 25-21, respectively. Georgia Southern rallied back to tie the match with a close 25-22 fourth-set victory before falling 15-11 in the fifth set.
Sanford posted a career-high 26 kills in the second match 3-2 loss to South Dakota State (2-0). GSU jumped ahead 2-0 with a pair of close 25-21, 25-22 set wins before the Jackrabbits rattled off three-straight set victories. South Dakota State won the third set 26-24 before taking sets four and five 25-23 and 15-10, respectively.
The Jackrabbits hit .230 for the match and exploded for a .327 hitting percentage for the fourth set and .438 for the fifth set. They also capitalized on 29 Eagle attack errors to win their second match of the tournament.
Southern Mississippi 3, Chattanooga 0
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team fell in its second match of the day to the Golden Eagles, 3-0 (23-25, 21-25, 22-25), in the Southern Miss Invitational at the Reed Green Coliseum on Friday. Every point was tightly contested between the Mocs and Golden Eagles with long rallies that included 14 tie scores and three lead changes in a thrilling second set.
"On paper, it was a 3-0 loss," said head coach Travis Filar. "But everyone in our locker room and at the match knew it could have been different as the break. We fought hard and battled for every point. Bottom line was that Southern Miss was more disciplined tonight and of the seven or eight long rallies, we only won one of them, that was the difference in the first two sets."
Junior outside Heather Parman registered 12 kills to lead the squad, while sophomore setter Bridget Camacho tallied 33 assists. Adding eight kills was senior middle blocker Ellie Kuhn along with sophomore outside Jennifer Kuroski.
"Our offense started to click more tonight, but we were not as disciplined on defense," said Filar. "Our strength this morning was our blocking and defense, which was our weakness tonight. It was our discipline at the net in blocking - knowing who our hitters were and being disciplined in our back row play."
Defensively, Chattanooga was led by junior libero Paula Passmore with 15 digs, while freshman Kasey Talley provided a tough service along with 13 digs. Additional help on the defensive end came from Parman and Camacho with eight digs each, and freshman Melissa Green contributed seven of her own as the Mocs dug up a total of 56 attacks.
On the blocking front, Kuhn and Teter each had a block solo as Chattanooga registered four total blocks.
Southern Miss' Halie Ecker paced the match with a double-double of 19 kills and 16 digs, while Kelsea Seymour registered 40 assists. The Golden Eagles notched 49 kills during the match including 18 and 17 kills, respectively, in the first two sets.