College of Charleston 3, Wyoming 1

LAWRENCE, Kan. -  College of Charleston bounced back from an afternoon loss to Kansas to defeat Wyoming 3-1 (25-15, 26-28, 25-21, 27-25) in the night match of the Jayhawk Classic on Friday.

The Cougars (4-3) hit .247 in a match characterized by standout individual performances and team energy, as CofC handed Wyoming (9-1) its first loss of the season. It was the second four-set win for College of Charleston over Wyoming in as many years.

Junior Darcy Dorton finished with 22 kills, just one off her season high, and had 10 digs for her fourth double-double this season. Emily Neideffer continued her record-breaking day as she bested her career-high 10 kills from the Kansas match with 14 kills and a hitting percentage of .542, making just one error. She hit .833 (5-0-6) in the clinching fourth set.

Junior Kallie McKown set a new career high with 27 digs as she made plays all over the court from her setter position. She finished with 55 assists and four kills on dump attacks. Senior Kelly Kolich broke out for a season-high nine kills and just two errors as she played in front of her home crowd.

Wyoming was led by Jodi Purdy who notched 13 kills and three blocks, but hit just .154 on the match. Becky Stewart and Reese Plante were the highlights defensively, making 31 digs and six blocks, respectively.

College of Charleston dominated the start of the match, racing to an 18-4 lead that had Wyoming on its heels. The Cowgirls were able to recover and scored 11 of the next 17 points before Kerstin Koehler ended the set on a block, giving CofC a 25-15 win. The Cougars held Wyoming to -.062 hitting as the defense made 17 digs and four blocks.

Wyoming responded in the second set by taking a 6-3 lead, but the Cougars immediately responded to take a 10-9 lead after consecutive kills from Dorton. Neither team would build a lead greater than two points until the Cougars seemed to find breathing room at 20-17 off a Purdy attack error. However, the Cowgirls were able to tie the set at 21 and get to set point at 24-23 before a Neideffer kill tied the set again at 24. From there, it was the Dorton/Camille Coffman show. Both players traded two sets of kills to force a tie at 26. Then a Dorton service error and Coffman service ace ended the set in Wyoming's favor, 28-26.

CofC fell behind 5-2 in the third set, but rallied to tie the set at 13 and then go ahead 16-14 on a Sloane White kill. White finished with 11 kills for the match. The Cowgirls quickly tied the set and the teams traded points until College of Charleston pulled away with four kills from Dorton and one from White to give CofC a 25-21 set victory.

College of Charleston jumped out to a 10-6 lead in the fourth set, but Wyoming fought to keep it close as both teams had done all match. The final set featured nine ties and three lead changes until a 5-0 run from the Cougars broke a 15-15 tie and put CofC up 20-15. The run featured big kills from Kolich, McKown and Neideffer. The Cougars eventually held set point at 24-20 and were on the verge of victory, but Wyoming grabbed momentum by scoring the next five points and forcing their own set point at 25-24. Dorton tied the set with a kill and two Wyoming errors gave CofC a 27-25 set victory.

College of Charleston will conclude the Jayhawk Invitational with a 1 p.m. ET match tomorrow against Arizona State.

Appalachian State 3, Georgetown 2

RICHMOND, Va. - Jacqui Spurgeon and Lindsey Sauls each tallied career-high kill totals as Appalachian State University volleyball picked up a thrilling 3-2 win over BIG EAST foe Georgetown in the opening match of the VCU/Third Degree Sportswear Invitational on Friday at the Stiegel Center.

The Mountaineers (2-6) staved off defeat in a gritty fourth-set performance to send the Hoyas (5-1) to their first defeat of the season by scores of 21-25, 25-17, 20-25, 29-17 and 15-12.

Georgetown was able to snag a first-set victory in a back-and-forth battle that featured seven ties and two lead changes, but App State would not back down, bouncing back in the second set to knot the match at 1-1.

The Mountaineers raced out to an 8-4 lead in the second set thanks to a balanced performance before the Hoyas were able to draw within one point (11-10) thanks to a 5-0 run. Appalachian would respond with a 7-0 run of its own to take an 18-10 lead en route to a set victory.

After snagging a second-straight 8-4 lead to start the third set, the Mountaineers would fall prey to another Georgetown run as the Hoyas reeled off 10-1 run to jump out to a 14-9 lead.

The Apps would tie the set twice in the late stages, but Georgetown hung on for a third-set victory to take a 2-1 advantage and pin the Mountaineers to the wall.

With the possibility of elimination looming, Appalachian State was able to hold off the Hoyas and grind out an incredible 29-27 third-set victory. The Mountaineers led for a majority of the set before Georgetown stormed back to take the lead late.

The Hoyas were able to push App State to the brink three times in the late stages but squandered three-straight match-point opportunities as the Apps finished the match on a 3-0 run to finish off a thrilling, 29-27 third-set win.

The Mountaineers dominated the fifth and final set of the match as they never trailed en route to a 15-12 victory and a 3-2 match win.

Spurgeon led the Apps with a career-high 22 kills while Sauls finished with a career-best 15 kills and five digs. Lauren Gray and Dalton Tolliver each tallied nine kills while Paige Brown recorded a career-high 41 assists while matching her season-best with 19 digs.

Courtney Rhein finished with 21 digs in the match while true freshman Meghan Mahoney tallied 15 digs. Jessica Eley set a career-high with nine block assists while Tolliver added eight of her own.

The Hoyas were paced by Alex Johnson's match-high 25 kills. Johnson also led all players with 25 digs while Haley Lowrance tallied a match-high 62 assist.

The Mountaineers hit .159 on the attack while Georgetown recorded a .162 attack percentage. Appalachian State finished with 15 kills to the Hoyas' 14 and committed 29 attack errors to Georgetown's 35.

App State returns to action tomorrow when it faces tournament host VCU at 1 p.m. before finishing the weekend against Virginia at 4:30 p.m.

MATCH NOTES: The Apps improved to 175-163 all-time in regular-season tournament play... App State also moved to 20-12 in five-set matches under head coach Matt Ginipro... the Mountaineers have won four-straight five-set matches dating back to last season... the 29-27 victory in the third set on Friday marked the highest score in a set-victory for the Mountaineers since Oct. 23, 2010 when the team notched a 30-28 first-set win over Davidson in a 3-0 sweep of the Wildcats... Rhein increased her career-dig total to 1,459... she needs 369 more digs to move into first-place in App State history.

Kansas 3, College of Charleston 0

LAWRENCE, Kan. -  The host Kansas Jayhawks (7-1) took a 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-22) win over College of Charleston (3-3) in the opening morning of the Jayhawk Classic in the Horejsi Center on the campus of Kansas University.

The Jayhawks led for most of the match as KU hit .316 and held CofC to a .150 hitting percentage.

CofC's Darcy Dorton made 14 kills, while Emily Neideffer set a new career high with 10 kills. Neideffer also hit .562, the highest mark for the Cougar hitters.

Kansas' Caroline Jarmoc led the Jayhawks with 11 kills and five blocks. Brianne Riley dug a match-high 15 digs.

Kansas hit .545 in the first set, landing kills on the first four swings. Kolich and Dorton were able to notch kills early on that made the margin just 11-7. The Jayhawks then went on a 7-1 run to open up an 18-8 lead and break the set open. Despite late kills from Dorton, KU won the first set 25-15.

College of Charleston's defense played with renewed intensity in the second set, tallying 16 digs and limiting Kansas to a .176 hitting mark. The Cougars fought hard in the opening rounds, pulling to within 8-7 after two kills from Neideffer. KU used a service ace and a block from Tiana Dockery to race out to an 11-7 lead and eventually 19-14. Another kill from Neideffer and a service ace from Lizzie Theesfeld made it a three-point game again, but Kansas strung together several points to eventually win 25-18.

After CofC built a 3-1 lead in the third set, Kansas went on a 5-0 run to lead 6-3 and never trailed for the rest of the set. However, the Cougars showed grit at the end of the set by going on a 7-0 run on match point to take a 24-15 deficit and rally back to 24-22. However, KU called a timeout and landed a kill on the next serve to end the set, 25-22.

Furman 3, Montana 1

MISSOULA, MONT. - Senior Natalie Braun recorded her fifth double-double of the season with a team-high 15 kills and 16 digs as the Furman volleyball team extended its winning streak to eight matches with a 3-1 (25-21, 25-16, 20-25, 25-17) victory at Montana Friday to open the Best Western Grant Creek Inn Invitational.

Furman put together a 5-0 run fueled by two service aces from senior Chandler Ambrester to overcome a 13-11 deficit, taking a 16-13 lead in the opening set.  The Grizzlies remained within one of the Paladins at 19-18, but four-consecutive Furman points, including back-to-back kills from Braun, gave the Paladins a 23-18 advantage.  Montana answered with a 3-1 run, before a final kill from junior Christina Dorismond sealed the 25-21 set victory for Furman.

The teams battled to a 15-15 tie in the second set before strong serving by Paladin freshman Caitlyn Scioscia sparked an 8-0 scoring spree to give Furman a 23-15 lead.  The Paladins won the set, 25-16, to take a 2-0 lead at the intermission.

Montana came out strong following the break, building a quick 11-5 lead over the Paladins to open set three.  A 6-1 Furman run kept the Paladins in the set at 12-11, before the Grizzlies scored three-straight to maintain control and hold on for a 25-20 set victory.

Following a 6-6 tie to open the fourth set, the Paladins put together a 5-1 run to lead 11-7.  Montana kept the set within reach at 17-14, but Furman won six out of the next seven points to maintain the team's momentum, taking a 25-17 set victory for the win.

Senior Caroline Adams hit .522 with 13 kills in the Paladin victory, while Ambrester notched a double-double with 13 kills and 12 digs.  Dorismond recorded a .433 attack percentage with 14 kills, and junior Elle Ross posted a team-high 22 digs.  Freshman Jo Wilks paced the team with 55 assists. 

Paige Branstiter hit .417 with 19 kills to lead Montana (1-6).  Kayla Reno added 12 kills, while Samantha Mass paced the Grizzlies with 18 digs.

Furman (9-1) will face Texas Tech Saturday at noon then play Towson at 6:30 p.m. to conclude the tournament.

Samford 3, Georgia State 0

ATLANTA, Ga. ---- Samford opened competition at the Georgia State Tournament in a close contest with the host team, Georgia State, but timely scoring helped the Bulldogs to earn the 3-0 sweep over the Panthers.

Samford (3-5) was not particularly sharp offensively, but made the most out of late scoring opportunities to earn its third win and second sweep of the 2012 season.  Michaela Reesor led the team with 13 kills on 37 swings.  Casey Garvey earned 38 assists and 10 digs for her second double-double of the season.  Katie Murphy, Lauren Hutchinson and Elizabeth Neisler had eight kills each and Alexis Bauer led all players in digs with 20. 

Georgia State (1-7) hit .153 as a team with Dede Bohannon leading the Panthers with 12 kills.

Tied at 3-3 in set one, the Panthers began to gather some momentum, as a 7-2 run put them up 10-5 to force Samford to regroup with a timeout.  Samford powered back as the Bulldogs charged ahead to take the lead, 14-12, as Georgia State called a timeout.  The Panthers had to take another break shortly thereafter as the Bulldogs continued to extend the lead, pulling ahead 19-14.  Serving up 24-20, Samford allowed Georgia State to rattle off back-to-back points as the Bulldogs regrouped with a timeout to avoid a late comeback.  Michaela Reesor sealed it on the next point, as she slammed down a kill to give Samford the 25-22 set victory and the early 1-0 match edge.

Samford got off to a 2-0 start in the second frame and held the slight lead for the first half of the set.  The Bulldogs began to pull away when, up 13-10, they went on a 4-1 run to extend the lead to six points, up 17-11.  Samford held the same margin later, up 20-14, as the Panthers called a timeout.  Just like the last set, Georgia State threatened late as they trimmed the Samford lead to just two points, forcing the Bulldogs to call a timeout up 22-20.  The Panthers would tie the match at 22-22, but would not score another point after that as kills by Katie Murphy, Reesor and a Georgia State attack error would give Samford the final three points needed for the 25-22 set win to pull ahead 2-0 in the match.

Play was tight to begin set three, with neither team able to hold more than a two-point lead.  Georgia State took the lead in the middle of the frame, moving up 15-13 to force a Samford timeout.  Down 16-14, two kills by Elizabeth Neisler and a service ace by Alexis Bauer gave Samford the 17-16 lead, forcing the home team to take a timeout.  The Panthers hit the 20-point mark first, holding a small 20-19 lead.  The Bulldogs came back with two quick points to take the lead and closed the set with a 4-1 run as Emily Meitz earned the closing kill to give Samford the 25-21 set win and the 3-0 match sweep.

Samford continues action at the Georgia State Invitational tomorrow, where they will face South Alabama (4-4) at 10 a.m. ET and Mercer (2-3) at 5 p.m. ET.

NC State 3, Western Carolina 0

Raleigh, N.C. - Setter Tina Nazario logged 19 assists and four kills in the defeat In opening day action at the Courtyard Midtown Invitational hosted by NC State, the Catamounts were swept by the Wolfpack, 3-0 (13-25, 13-25, 15-25), who improved to 6-1 on the season.

Western Carolina (2-6) were very much in the first and second sets with WCU being down 10-11 in the first and all tied up with N.C. State at 11 in the second set. Long runs in both sets would give the Wolfpack a 2-0 advantage going into the break.

The third set was all N.C. State as the home team began the set with a 5-0 run to begin the third. Runs of three, three, and four would set the tone for the rest of the final set as the Wolfpack would score in bunches to take the final set 25-15.

No Catamount was able to break double-digits in kills with Caitlin Piechota leading the Purple and Gold with seven kills.  Piechota and Morgan Cochran finished with 10 digs apiece. Sophomore Paige McConlogue also added five digs.

N.C. State - who has played all of its matches at home this season - was led by Dariyan Hopper who tallied 11 kills in the win. Meredith Richardson added eight kills, two digs and five blocks.

Saturday, Western Carolina looks to get back to its winning ways after dropping its last four matches following its 2-1 start. The Catamounts begin the day against the Chippewas of Central Michigan at 11 am before concluding play against Campbell at 5 pm. Central Michigan swept the Campbell Camels in the first match of the tournament. Live stats for both matches Saturday can be found on CatamountSports.com via GameTracker.

Denver 3, The Citadel 1

Army 3, The Citadel 0

Arlington, Va. - The Citadel's Rachael Farrell drove home 10 kills and tacked on 17 digs against Army, but it was the Black Knights Ariana Mankus that keyed the 26-24, 25-23, 25-19 victory in the second match of the All-Academy Tournament.

The duo of Farrell and Amanda Rudnik, who had nine kills en route to a .333 attack percentage, led the Dogs to 34 team kills. Rudnik, like Farrell, also made an impact on the defensive end with 11 digs. Meanwhile, freshman setter Mikaela Tracy added 15 digs and 29 assists. The loss dropped the Bulldogs to 0-8 on the season.

Mankus paired with Megan Wilton, who finished with 12 kills, as Army held a 47-34 edge in kills. Wilton tacked on three assisted blocks, joining Francine Vasquez and Molly McDonald with multiple blocks. The Black Knights managed a .212 attack percentage and also held a distinct 10-4 edge in assisted blocks.

The Citadel edged in front of a tough Army unit, 7-5, in the early stages of the opening set. The Citadel remained in control with four kills from Rudnik over a six-point stretch to make for a 14-9 lead. With the set in the balance, and the Dogs leading 23-17 on a Farrell kill, a series of kills by Marguax Jarka and Wilton trimmed the lead to two. The Citadel quickly rebounded by virtue of a service error, but allowed a kill by Mankus and consecutive service aces from Vasquez to pull the set even at 24. Jarka closed out the frame with back-to-back kills to complete the 26-24 victory.

Army used that momentum in the second set to establish a 10-7 lead before a 5-2 run highlighted by two Rudnik kills drew the score even at 12. The two teams endured two more ties, including a 16-16 score, before the Black Knights moved in front on a Citadel service error. The match remained tight, with Army unable to sustain greater than a three point lead, before kills by Farrell narrowed the margin to 23-22. Two points later, following a d'Angelo strike, Mankus closed out the 25-23 win with a kill.

The Black Knights emerged from the break by outscoring the Dogs 10-7, despite kills by Farrell and Lauren Hurt. Unwilling to give in, The Citadel took advantage of a kill by Cassie Uribe to move the score to 14-12. Army quickly answered with a 6-2 spurt, including points by McDonald, Kelly Horan and Mankus to grab a 20-14 lead. A pair of kills by Farrell and unforced Army errors allowed for just five additional Citadel points in the 25-19 Army victory.

Senior Rachael Farrell tallied nine kills and Ise d'Angelo totaled eight kills, but it was the University of Denver that captured the first match of the All-Academy Tournament with a 3-1 (25-15, 25-18, 22-25, 25-15) win on Friday afternoon.

Emily Dalton paced The Citadel's defensive effort with 14 digs, joined by Farrell, Mikaela Tracy and Erin Bucherl finished with six digs apiece. Tracy also made her impact on the offensive end with 22 assists, a team-high. Meanwhile, senior Jessica Maxwell added seven kills to round out a front row that had 39 total kills.

The tandem of Michele Swope and Colleen King combined for 25 kills for a Denver unit that finished with 52 kills and .282 attack percentage. The Pioneers defensive efforts of Kate Acker (11 digs), Lyndi Johnson (10 digs) and Brea Muhle (5 blocks assisted) also proved to be tough for The Citadel offense.

Denver stormed out to an early 9-4 advantage in the first set before a series of unforced errors opened the door for a three-point Citadel rally that pulled the score within a pair. Denver responded with a 10-3 run, highlighted by three kills from Faimie Kingsley and two off the hand of Michele Swope. Trailing 19-10, Lauren Hurt stepped up for the Cadets with a pair of kills, but Denver took advantage of four errors and a late kill by Swope to capture the victory 25-15.

The Pioneers again opened the set strong, assuming a 10-4 lead on a Swope kill. A kill by Cassie Uribe trimmed the margin to four and after Bucherl forced two Denver errors, the score stood at 11-7. Scoring seven of the next 12 points, UD stretched its lead to 19-12 in the late stages of the set. The Citadel finished with just two kills over the final points of the set as the Pioneers completed the 25-18 win.

The Citadel answered with a strong third set, assuming a 14-9 lead as kills by Uribe and Farrell complemented a Maxwell service ace. The Dogs survived a run by the Pioneers, which drew the game to 17-16, responding with strikes by Maxwell, Farrell and Uribe to make for a 22-20 lead. An attack error by Denver's Cassie Ronda opened the door for a three-point cushion and teamed with kills by Hurt and d'Angelo, The Citadel snatched the third set 25-22.

Three kills in the first nine points of the third set provided Denver a lead that it would not relinquish. A kill by Farrell and three straight points with Rachel Keefer in serve trimmed the lead to 7-6. A series of kills by Ronda and Swope gave the Pioneers breathing room as they put together what proved to be an 11-3 run to move in front 18-9. Two kills from the combination of Farrell and Uribe were not enough to pose a threat to UD, who took the match with a 25-15 win.

The Citadel returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 8, when the Dogs meet Air Force (1:30 pm) and Navy (6:00 pm) to complete the All-Academy Tournament. For more information on Bulldog Volleyball, go to the official website of The Citadel Athletics, www.CitadelSports.com.

New Mexico 3, Georgia Southern 2

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - New Mexico got 20 kills from Chantale Riddle and staved off five set points in the third frame to take a 3-2 (23-25, 25-15, 32-30, 22-25, 15-7) volleyball victory over Georgia Southern in the Lobo Invitational Friday night.

It was the first five-set match of the season for Georgia Southern (5-3), which saw its three match win streak come to an end.

Meredith Paskert led the Eagles with 16 kills, while Moriah Bellissimo logged 14 kills and 18 digs. Nicole Jeschelnik had 13 kills and 14 digs, while Kate Van Dyke tallied 40 assists and 10 digs. Alexandra Beecher finished with 17 digs.

The Eagles made Riddle work for her points as she took 60 swings in the match for New Mexico (8-1), and Alijah Gunsaulus booked 13 kills and 16 digs. Lena Skipper and Elsa Krieg each had nine kills, and Lexi Ross finished with eight kills and five blocks. Hannah Johnson contributed 23 assists, and Jordan Russell had 30 assists and 12 digs.

The Lobos jumped out to a 4-0 advantage in the deciding set as Riddle and Ross logged kills and then combined for a block. Georgia Southern trimmed the margin to 7-6 on a Jeschelnik kill, but New Mexico ran off five consecutive points, with three on kills from Gunsaulus, to pull away.

Georgia Southern had five set points in the third frame, but New Mexico had an answer each time. A Kym Coley block provided the last set point for Georgia Southern at 30-29, but Ross got a kill for the Lobos and Riddle and Ross combined for a block. Riddle's kill gave the Lobos a 32-30 set win and a 2-1 cushion in the match. Georgia Southern had trailed 24-22 in the frame, but a kill by Bellissimo and a block from Bellissimo and Enjoli Johnson evened the score.

Leading 18-17 in the fourth set, Georgia Southern pushed the margin to 21-17 with the aid of a kill by Johnson and a block from Paskert. Paskert added two kills to make the score 24-21, and after a GSU service error, Bellissimo's kill evened the match at 2-2.

The Eagles overcame a late four-point deficit to take the first set. Trailing 20-16, Georgia Southern used a 6-2 run, with four points coming off Bellissimo kills, to tie the score at 22-22. After Riddle put the Lobos back on top with a kill, Jeschelnik put a ball down for the Eagles, and Paskert finished off the set with a solo block followed by a kill.

The Lobos flexed their muscle in set two and used an 8-1 spurt, with two kills from Riddle, to break a 10-10 tie and stretch out a seven-point lead. The Eagles never got closer than five points for the rest of the set.

The Eagles are back in action tomorrow as they continue play in the Lobo Invitational by facing UC Santa Barbara and Portland.

Troy 3, Chattanooga 1

Tennessee State 3, Chattanooga 1

Kennesaw, Ga. - The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team is off to a rocky start at the Kennesaw State Owls Classic in Kennesaw, Ga. UTC dropped back-to-back 3-1 losses to Troy and Tennessee State on the first day of the tournament.

The Mocs fell to 4-4 on the season against Troy with the first match of the day. The Trojans took a 3-1 victory over Chattanooga after losing the first set of the match. Senior Christina Teter and freshman Julimar Alvarado led the Mocs offensive attack with 10 kills, assisted by junior Bridget Camacho who set up 41 of UTC's 47 total kills.

Chattanooga's record dropped below the .500 mark to 4-5 with its loss to Tennessee State Friday evening. The 3-1 loss to the Tigers saw three of the four sets played decided by three points or less. Alvarado again reached double digits with 12 kills followed up by fellow freshman Lauren Gainer who dropped 10 kills on TSU.

UTC was off to a good start against Troy with a 25-22 set win to begin the first match of the day, but things went downhill in the match for the Mocs with the next three sets. Chattanooga was outscored 25-19 in the second set, despite recording one more kills than the Trojans in the set loss. Chattanooga's downfall in the second frame came on eight errors.

The Mocs pulled closer in the third set, keeping the score neck-and-neck until the set reached a 21-21 score. UTC took a one-point lead to go ahead 22-20, but four straight scoring volleys, though interrupted by a Chattanooga timeout, gave the Trojans a 25-22 set win.

The fourth and final set went to Troy with a 25-20 score. The Mocs led the set by a one-point margin three times during the frame, but the Trojans took a 16-15 lead midway through and never looked back, taking the match with a 3-1 final.

Chattanooga looked to get back on track against Tennessee State in the Friday evening match, but a 3-1 victory for the Tigers handed the Mocs their first loss to the Nashville, Tenn., school.

TSU tool a 1-0 match lead with a 25-19 win in the first set. The Tigers recorded 16 kills while the Mocs only managed 9 in the first frame.

UTC came back in the second set to battle the Tigers to extra points. Chattanooga eventually took a 30-28 set win. Tennessee State led the Mocs 28-27 at the end of the match, but a timeout called by head coach Travis Filar settled the Chattanooga offense down and allowed the team to pick up three straight points to take the set.

Despite the Chattanooga rally to win the second frame, Tennessee State went on to win the next two sets. The Tigers topped the Mocs 25-22 in the second after pulling away from a 22-22 tie, and the final set was decided by only two points as TSU took the final set 25-23 for a 3-1 match win.

The Mocs are back in action Saturday at noon with a matchup with the hosting Kennesaw State Owls. This match can be watched live and followed on live stats via the link above.

Chattanooga wraps up the Kennesaw State Owls Classic tomorrow evening against North Carolina Central at 5 p.m. This will be the first meeting between the two programs. The match can be followed with live stats provided by Kennesaw State.

Duke 3, Elon 0

DURHAM, N.C. - Offensive woes plagued the Elon volleyball team today, Sept. 7, as the maroon and gold fell to Duke (6-1) in its first match of the Duke Classic by a final of 3-0 (14-25, 21-25, 23-25) in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Elon was led by freshman Megan Gravley, who recorded nine kills and 11 digs, while sophomore Kris Harris finished with seven kills. On defense, senior Ali Deatsch tallied 12 digs and senior Celia Rose Eddy recorded four blocks.

After the Blue Devils opened the first set with a 5-1 lead, the Phoenix went on to score three of the next four points off kills by Allison Johnson, Gravley and Catherine Head to close the gap to two, 6-4. With Duke up by six, back-to-back kills by Gravley made the score 10-6 in favor of the Blue Devils. A kill by Harris pulled the maroon and gold back within four, 12-8, but Duke was able to maintain the upper hand and won the set by a final of 25-14.

Elon took a 3-1 lead early in the second set before the Blue Devils tied it at four-all. A kill by Ana Nicksic gave the Phoenix a three-point advantage, 9-6, and then a kill by Gravley kept the lead at three for the maroon and gold, 10-7. After Duke tied the score at 12, the set continued to go back-and-forth, but a block by Gravley and Eddy and a kill by Harris kept the Phoenix with the upper hand, 14-13. The Blue Devils would later use four straight to serve set point with the score at, 24-19, but the Phoenix would not go away quietly, scoring the next two off kills by Gravley and Harris to cut the deficit to three, 24-21. However, Duke managed to win the final point and take the set, 25-21.

The Phoenix claimed a 6-2 lead to start the third set off three kills by Harris, one by Chanelle Smith and a block by Head and Nicksic. After a Duke error gave the maroon and gold a five-point advantage, 8-3, the Blue Devils were forced to call its first timeout of the set. Kills by Gravley and Head helped Elon maintain the lead of five before Duke tied the set at 15-all and took an 18-15 advantage. The Phoenix pulled back within one, 18-17, off a block by Gravley and Eddy and then tied it at 19 with a kill by Gravley. Elon kept it close, but Duke was able to win six of the final 10 points to win the set, 25-23, and take the 3-0 match win.

Elon will continue play in the Duke Classic tomorrow, Sept. 8, with matches against Northeastern and East Carolina at noon and 5 p.m., respectively.

UNC Asheville 3, UNCG 2

GREENSBORO, N.C. - It was an evening of rallies inside Fleming Gymnasium Friday, but with UNCG holding a 12-9 lead late in the fifth set, UNC Asheville responded with a 6-1 run to end the match and escape with a 3-2 victory to begin the Spartan-Aggie Classic. The Bulldogs improve to 3-7 overall while the Spartans fall to 3-2.

Freshman Lauren Betlach notched her first career double-double with a career-high 19 kills to go along with 13 digs. Sophomore Vicky Harley had a solid evening offensively, putting down 15 kills on 29 attempts with just six errors to post a .310 hitting mark. She added a career-high 10 blocks (nine assists) for her first-ever double-double. Defensively, rookie Katherine Santiago continued to shine, racking up a personal-best and match-high 27 digs.

Sophomore setter Emily McMurtrey was responsible for UNCG's third double-double of the evening as she handed out a career-high 59 assists to go along with 13 digs. Also reaching double-digit kills in the match were juniors Karrian Chambers and Olivia Humphries - posting 14 and 12 respectively.

UNC Asheville held a slight upper hand in hitting (.194-.179), kills (71-69) and digs (90-82) while the Spartans dominated at the net - racking up a season-best 16.5 blocks as compared to 9.0 for the visitors.

The first set was nip and tuck throughout, as neither team could build a lead of more than three points. UNCG was able to stave off five set points before taking a 31-30 advantage on a Chambers kill. The Bulldogs had an answer, however, responding with three-straight kills to capture the frame by a 33-31 count.

The Spartans were much more in control in the second interval, building a 13-10 lead on a Morgan Freeman kill. UNCG took leads of 16-12 and 20-14 on the way to a 25-18 victory that knotted the match at one set apiece.

UNC Asheville scored eight of the first 12 points of the third set, but the Spartans rallied with three-straight points to pull within one. That would be as close as UNCG would come the rest of the way, as Holly Shelton shut the door with a kill to give the Bulldogs a 25-23 frame win.

It was another tight affair in the fourth interval, with the score tied at as late as 20. UNC Asheville moved in front 24-21 on a Kelsey Sidney attack error; however, the Spartans dug deep and stunned their visitors with a 5-0 run which pushed the match into the deciding set.

With the score knotted at four, a 6-3 run by the home team made it 10-7 and forced the Bulldogs to call timeout. UNCG held a 12-9 advantage when Harley posted a kill, but UNC Asheville rode the serving of Bryn Pfeiffer and scored six of the last seven points of the contest to steal the win.

The Spartan-Aggie Invitational concludes tomorrow with two matches. UNCG will take on crosstown rival North Carolina A&T at 11 a.m. before entertaining American University at 7 p.m. Both matches will take place in Fleming Gymnasium.

Presbyterian College 3, Davidson 2

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Despite a strong effort, the Davidson volleyball team was unable to maintain a 2-1 lead and dropped the final two sets of the contest to take a 3-2 loss to the Presbyterian Blue Hose in the first game of the North Florida/Best Western Invitational on Friday afternoon.

Caroline Brown and Taylor Pisel ended the match with 15 and 13 kills, respectively.  Molly Crenshaw's 27 digs led the 'Cats, as did Ariel Ley's 45 assists.  Brown, whose 19 digs earned her a double-double on the day, also served up two aces. Teammate Hannah Rau had a pair of service aces as well and accounted for two block assists and five kills. Rachel Earnhardt fell just shy of a double-double in the match, recording 12 digs and nine kills in addition to a block assist.

The 'Cats totaled 52 kills and 77 digs to Presbyterian's 60 kills and 78 digs. Each team served up six aces, and the Wildcats' totaled five blocks (eight assists, three solo) in the match.

Rachel Hall tallied 15 kills and six blocks in the match, with Presley Mabrey's 18 digs pacing PC. Ashtin Frank had 49 assists while Allison Brown chipped in with 14 kills.

The 'Cats struggled through the first set, as the Blue Hose quickly capitalized and took a 7-1 lead. That advantage was stretched to nine points on a kill by PC's Brown, and Presbyterian would remain ahead for the rest of the match.  Though the Wildcats' were able score three straight points to make it a 24-18 set, PC closed things out on another kill by Brown to take the first set 25-18.

The two squads stayed neck-and-neck throughout most of the second set, playing to a 9-9 tie. After PC took a one-point lead on a service ace by Ashtin Frank, the Wildcats' stormed back as Brown served the next five points, including back-to-back service aces as Davidson took a 14-11 advantage. PC soon composed itself, and the two teams once again found themselves in a 17-17 tie on a kill by the Blue Hose's Brown. Consecutive kills by Pisel swayed the game in the 'Cats' favor once again, 21-19, before Hannah Rau added a kill and an ace as Davidson claimed the second set, 25-20, to tie the match at 1-1.

Davidson maintained control of a tight third set as well.  An ace by Ley jump was the first of three straight points, giving the 'Cats a 12-7 lead on a PC attacking error. The Wildcats outscored the Blue Hose 13-7 to conclude the match as a kill by Brown gave Davidson the 25-14 set win and the 2-1 lead.

The fourth set offered up another battle between the two teams, who traded points to an 8-8 tie. The 'Cats scored five straight, with Crenshaw serving an ace and Brown recording a block assist and a kill as Davidson went ahead 13-9. The Blue Hose would battle back to tie things up at 15-all. The squads again kept it close, evening the set at 18-18 on a ball handling error by PC. However, the Blue Hose closed things out with a 4-0 run as they took the set by a score of 25-20 to tie the match at two sets apiece.

After trading points once again through the start of the tiebreaker set, Presbyterian took a two-point lead at the midway point and never looked back.  A 4-1 span in favor of the Blue Hose put them up 11-7 on a kill by Berryman, and a pair of kills from Hall put the set away. The Wildcats' took a 15-9 loss in the set to drop the match 3-2 to PC.

The Wildcats will be back in action at the UNF/Best Western Invitational on Saturday as they face Florida A & M in a 10 a.m. contest before a 7 p.m. tilt with host North Florida at 7 p.m.