Davidson 3, UNCG 2

DAVIDSON, N.C. – Up two sets to one, the UNCG volleyball team could not hold off Davidson on the road, falling 3-2 Sunday afternoon inside Belk Arena – the site of the 2012 Southern Conference Volleyball Championship.

The Spartans (10-10, 4-4) held the upper hand in hitting .168-.114 and blocking (14.5-10.0) but the Wildcats (8-10, 4-4) owned a slight edge in kills (60-59) and digs (97-96). Davidson committed 36 errors in the match to UNCG’s 27, but had 21 more attempts (211-190).

Junior libero Kellie Orewiler tied her career high in digs with 36 while freshman Katherine Santiago and junior Karrian Chambers contributed 20 and 17 respectively. Chambers added 19 kills for her team-leading fifth double-double of the campaign. Juniors Olivia Humphries and Morgan Freeman also reached double digits with 14 and 13 kills. Senior Ari Lysacek played in every set for the first time since the opening weekend and she came up with 38 assists, nine digs and five kills in her return.

UNCG scored five of the first eight points before Davidson answered with five consecutive scores to move in front 8-5. Ariel Ley posted an ace a couple of plays later, giving the Wildcats an 11-8 lead, but the Spartans were able to tie the score at 11 when freshman Julia Westerbur put down a kill. Another ace capped a 5-2 run for Davidson as the Wildcats took a 16-13 advantage. However, UNCG came up with another trio of points to knot the set at 16. The Spartans were able to stay close when a block by Humphries made the score 19-18 in favor of the home team, but UNCG scored just once more, allowing the Wildcats to clinch the frame by a 25-19 count.

The Spartans came out with new energy in the second interval, jumping out to an 8-2 advantage, but Davidson chipped into the lead, drawing with 11-7 on a Caroline Brown kill. The Wildcats nearly came all the way back to tie the set, but with UNCG leading 17-16, junior Morgan Freeman put the ball down to give the Spartans a two-point cushion. UNCG then scored three more points to establish some breathing room at 21-16. That would be all the Spartans needed to take the frame 25-19 and tie the match at one set apiece. 

The teams played to a 4-4 deadlock in the third set before UNCG asserted itself and scored six of the next seven points to go in front 10-5. The lead grew all the way to 16-9 on a Humphries kill, but Davidson answered with a 5-1 run to pull within 17-14 – forcing a Spartan timeout. UNCG would not be denied in the set, however, scoring four-straight points to put it out of reach. The Spartans took the frame 25-16 and secured a 2-1 match lead.

A Vicky Harley kill gave UNCG a 7-3 lead in the fourth set, but the Wildcats scored four-straight to force a tie. The Spartans regained their composure and moved in front 13-12 on a Davidson attacking error but could not sustain the momentum as the Wildcats put together a 9-6 run to take a 21-19 lead. UNCG fought off a set point down 24-22, but a long rally ended in Davidson’s favor as the Wildcats escaped with a 25-23 victory to send the match to a fifth set.

A kill by Lysacek put the Spartans up 4-2 in the fifth frame, but Davidson answered with a 4-2 run to tie the interval at six. Down 11-9, UNCG received three straight kills and took a 12-11 advantage. The Wildcats called timeout to try to regain their footing and they did, scoring the final four points of the afternoon to eke out the victory.

Georgia Southern 3, Elon 2

STATESBORO, Ga. – Nicole Jeschelnik tallied a career-high 19 kills to go along with 16 digs, and Meredith Paskert added 19 kills to lead Georgia Southern to a 3-2 (25-18, 25-22, 19-25, 19-25, 15-6) Southern Conference volleyball victory over Elon Sunday afternoon in Hanner Fieldhouse.

The Eagles (16-6, 7-1 SoCon) won the first two sets but dropped the next two by identical 25-19 scores, and the momentum had definitely swung to the Elon side of the court. The Eagles got a sideout to open a slim 6-4 cushion in the fifth set and proceeded to run off five straight points during Kate Van Dyke’s serve to push the margin to 11-4. Paskert and Jeschelnik each had two kills during the run.

Danielle Smith got a kill for the Phoenix (10-13, 3-5 SoCon), but Paskert answered with a kill and Jeschelnik combined with Kayla Henderson for a block, making the score 13-5. Another Jeschelnik kill gave the Eagles match point, and the Phoenix committed a hitting error to end the contest.

The victory broke an eight-match losing streak in five-set matches for GSU, dating back to last season. The Eagles were 0-5 in five-set matches in 2011 and 0-3 this season.

Kym Coley finished with 12 kills for the Eagles, and Henderson posted eight. Van Dyke had 56 assists and 16 digs, and Alexandra Beecher posted a match-high 27 digs, including a few spectacular ones during long rallies in the fifth set.

Smith led Elon with 12 kills, while Kris Harris added 11 and Megan Gravley posted 10. The Phoenix combined for 13 blocks, nine of which came in the third and fourth sets when they made their run.

Chattanooga 3, The Citadel 2

Charleston, S.C. – Sparked by the play of Ise d'Angelo and Rachael Farrell, who finished with 11 kills each, and a record-tying performance by Erin Bucherl, The Citadel went to five sets with visiting Chattanooga before falling by scores of 25-20, 20-25, 25-21, 14-25 and 15-13.

The tandem of d'Angelo and Farrell led the Cadets with 11 kills, while Jessica Maxwell and Lauren Hurt recorded nine each. Defensively, Erin Bucherl tied the school mark with 41 digs, set during the 2008 season by Rachel Sanders. Farrell was also instrumental among back row hitters with 19 digs, while Emily Dalton added 13. Freshmen setters Mikaela Tracy and Rachel Keefer posted 34 and 10 assists, respectively, but the Dogs fell to 4-20 overall and 0-8 in SoCon play.

Chattanooga outside hitter Julimar Alvarado totaled 27 kills and led a unit that finished with 66 in the match. Alongside Alvarado, who posted the fourth-most kills by a Citadel opponent in program history, in double-digit kills was Sarah Batterton (11) and Briana Reid (10). The Mocs (9-14, 3-5) also got a lift on the defensive end from Paula Passmore (23 digs), Briana Reid (20 digs) and Bridget Camacho (19 digs). Camacho also handed out a match-high 58 assists.

The hard fought opening set was an indication of how the match would go as the two teams battled to a 7-7 tie. Alvarado gave the Mocs momentum with three kills among the next five points, forging her team into an 11-7 lead. However, The Citadel battled back, converting a series of kills by Hurt and Tracy along with five UTC unforced errors to pull within 17-16 of the lead. Chattanooga again relied on the services of Alvarado, who drove home two of the team's final eight points in the 25-20 win.

A reenergized Citadel unit bounced back in the second game, scoring 10 of the first 16 points en route to a four-point advantage. Four kills by Farrell over the next nine Bulldog points sparked a 9-5 run that allowed for a 19-11 lead. Consecutive kills by Kasey Talley, Alvarado and Christina Teter eventually drew UTC within four points of the lead, 20-16. However, offensive strikes by Keefer, Hurt, Farrell and Maxwell proved to be the difference in the 25-20 victory.

The Bulldogs carried their momentum into the third set, using kills by Cassie Uribe and Maxwell to establish an early 11-4 cushion. The Citadel maintained that distance until a kill by Teter led to a 4-0 run by the Mocs that made for a 16-15 Citadel lead. Chattanooga continued to collect offensive points, eventually drawing the score even at 20 following three Bulldog unforced errors. Alvarado answered with three kills among UTC's final five points to complete the 25-21 win.

The Citadel established an early 7-3 lead in the fourth set, following kills by d'Angelo and Bailey Kernodle, and did not look back. After a kill by Batterton, which gave UTC their fourth point, The Citadel rattled off five straight points to move in front 13-5. The Dogs took their largest lead of the set, 22-11, following kills by d'Angelo, Maxwell and Keefer as they sent the match to a decisive fifth set by a 25-14 score.

Chattanooga established itself early in the fifth set, jumping out to a 4-1 lead on an Alvarado kill. The Citadel responded with a kill by Kernodle and capitalized on kills by Farrell and d'Angelo to make for an eventual 7-5 UTC advantage. A series of Moc attack errors narrowed the lead to three points, but the unrelenting effort by Farrell and her teammates allowed The Citadel to pull within 14-13 of the lead. After a Chattanooga timeout, Lauren Gainer drove home the game winner as UTC emerged 15-13.