Mercer 3, Samford 2
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer volleyball team won its fourth-straight match in thrilling fashion on Saturday, knocking off Southern Conference leader Samford, 3-2 (25-22, 31-29, 20-25, 8-25, 15-13) at Hawkins Arena.
Mercer’s fifth win in its last six outings pushed the Bears to 10-16 (5-7 SoCon) while Samford lost for just the second time in its last 14 matches and dropped to 16-9 (10-2 SoCon).
Mercer seniors Caroline Carlton and Cara Tripp combined for 25 kills in the victory, while a solid defensive effort was paced by sophomore Tori Penrod’s 19 digs. Mercer’s setters, sophomore Hannah Noon and freshman Claire Walizcek, paired for 43 assists in the winning effort.
Things were back and forth at the outset of the first frame until the Bears broke away from a 6-6 tie with five-straight scores. Samford got back within one point two separate times, but on each occasion the Bears were able to score to preserve the lead.
A memorable second set featured 19 lead changes and seven tie scores as the scoreboard climbed well beyond the typical 25-point threshold. With a raucous crowd behind the home team, the Bears were able to claim a 31-29 victory after a Samford service error and a kill by junior Molly Locke completed the stanza.
A 10-minute intermission between the second and third sets benefitted Samford, as the Bulldogs turned the tables on Mercer with victories in each of the next two sets. Samford’s attack was particularly effective in the comeback, with hitting percentages of .343 and .640 in the third and fourth set.
In the deciding frame, the teams were trading scores when a thunderous kill by Tripp helped stoke a 4-0 Mercer surge. Samford made things interesting at the end, cutting their deficit to 14-13 before Walizcek and Carlton teamed up for a match-clinching score. As Carlton’s spike found the floor, a sizeable collection of Mercer’s supporters stormed the court in celebration.
Tripp added five block-assists, two service aces and a dig to her 12 kills. Carlton finished with a .282 hitting percentage, two digs and two total blocks.
Locke collected 14 digs, eight kills, two bock assists and a service ace. Freshman Emily Krogman was efficient with her swings, posting nine kills on 18 attempts for a .333 attacking percentage.
Mercer hits the road for its next SoCon match, traveling to UNC Greensboro for a 7 p.m. first serve on November 7.
Furman 3, UNCG 0
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Behind a .303 hitting percentage and nine total blocks, Furman volleyball won in straight sets at UNCG (25-17, 25-21, 25-21) on Saturday. With the win, Furman moves to 17-6 on the season and 10-2 in SoCon play. The Paladins have now reached 10 SoCon wins for the ninth-straight season. The loss drops UNCG to 15-10 overall and 7-5 in SoCon play.
Ashton Gregory led Furman offensively with 16 kills and just one error, good for a .625 hitting percentage. She added four blocks, including three solo. Andrea Fisher recorded 10 kills and a team-high three aces. Jo Wilks turned in a double-double with 40 assists and 13 digs, and Meg DeMaar recorded a team-high 15 digs and added five assists. Furman out-hit the Spartans .303-.155 and turned in 46 kills to UNCG’s 34.
Furman jumped out to an early 6-2 lead in set one, using an Ashton Gregory block to force the quick UNCG timeout. Andrea Fisher served until UNCG finally cut into the lead at 10-3. The teams traded points until Furman took a 13-4 lead, forcing UNCG’s second timeout of the set. Furman continued to add to its lead, until the Paladins opened up the largest lead of the set at 22-10. The Spartans battled back to cut into the lead at 22-14, before Furman took a 24-15 lead. UNCG used two-straight points to cut Furman’s lead to seven at 24-17, but the Paladins used a kill by Taina Joseph to close it out, taking set one, 25-17.
The Paladins again opened up the early lead in set two, this time at 4-1, before UNCG came back to cut the lead to one at 4-3. Furman then used three-straight points to open up a four-point lead at 7-3. The teams then traded points until the Paladins pushed the lead to five at 9-4, forcing a UNCG timeout. Furman continued to add to its lead until it opened up a seven-point lead at 15-8, prompting the Spartans to call their final timeout of set two. The teams traded points until Furman pushed the lead to nine at 21-12. UNCG battled back, using a 6-1 run to cut Furman’s lead to four at 22-18, forcing the Paladins to take their first timeout of the match. Out of the timeout, the teams traded points until the Spartans cut Furman’s lead to three at 24-21, but the Paladins used a kill from Ashton Gregory to take set two, 25-21, for a 2-0 lead in the match.
Set three was close from the opening serve, as the teams traded points almost the entire set. With the score at 18-18, Furman used back-to-back kills by Ashton Gregory and Annie Bierman to take a 20-18 lead, forcing UNCG to take its first timeout of the set. Out of the timeout, the Spartans cut the lead to one at 20-19, but the Paladins used another Gregory kill and a block by Taina Joseph and Jo Wilks to push the lead back to three at 22-19, prompting UNCG to call its final timeout of the set. The teams traded points again, but Furman closed out set three, 25-21, to take the match, 3-0.
ETSU 3, Chattanooga 2
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – On a night when senior libero Katie Muey broke ETSU’s career digs record, the Buccaneer volleyball team dug deep to find a way to win against their in-state conference rival.
Despite winning the first two sets in fine fashion, the Blue and Gold couldn’t put away a stingy Chattanooga squad until ETSU rallied and survived an emotional five-set thriller (25-21, 25-15, 18-25, 18-25, 16-14) in front of a rowdy Homecoming crowd on Saturday night inside Brooks Gym.
Muey, who entered the night needing 13 digs to break Tish Wilson’s (1991-94) mark of 1,689, finished with a match-high 24 digs, moving her career total to 1,701.
As Muey was helping the Buccaneers defensively, fellow seniors Meredith Hardy and Bethany Gesell helped pace ETSU on the offensive end. Hardy led all players with 20 kills (.349 attack percentage) and tallied four blocks, while Gesell registered her fourth double-double of the season. Gesell ended with 16 kills and 14 digs in the win.
Freshman Rylee Milhorn and junior Ashleigh Shain also posted double-digit digs for the Bucs. Milhorn recorded a career-high 19 and Shain pitched in with a career-best 15 digs. ETSU’s duo of Kristen Favre and Jamie Rutledge quarterbacked the offense. Favre finished with a match-high 33 assists and eight digs, while Rutledge added 26 assists.
As a team, ETSU overcame 33 attack and 10 service errors as the Bucs were plus-19 in kills (65-46) and plus-7 in digs (90-83). The Blue and Gold managed to out-hit the Mocs, .166-.136.
With the win, ETSU snapped its two-game losing skid and improved to 12-15, 6-5 in SoCon play. Chattanooga dropped to 12-16, 5-8, and the Bucs have now won seven of the last eight over the Mocs.
The Bucs continue their three-match homestand Tuesday night when ETSU hosts Western Carolina. First serve is set for 7 p.m., inside Brooks Gym.
Wofford 3, The Citadel 0
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – An all-around effort led the Wofford volleyball team to a straight-set victory over The Citadel (25-22, 25-16, 25-17) Saturday afternoon in Southern Conference action at Benjamin Johnson Arena.
The Terriers registered 10 total blocks for the first time this season and controlled the majority of the match. Freshman Danni Densford tied a career-high with seven rejections and added seven kills for 11.5 points. Freshman Bella Santoro had nine kills and three blocks to match Densford’s point total. Santoro also went for 10 digs.
Wofford (12-16, 4-7 SoCon) outhit the Bulldogs (7-22, 0-13 SoCon) .293 to .111 and nearly doubled The Citadel’s kill output 43-25. Freshman Alex Holland contributed with eight slams. Senior Taylor Baird and junior Liz Buterbaugh posted seven each with impressive hitting marks of .350 and .455, respectively.
The victory earns Wofford a regular season series sweep. The Terriers were winners in three sets back on September 27 and have now won the last seven over the Bulldogs. Meanwhile, The Citadel suffered its 47th straight Southern Conference defeat.
A shaky start saw the Terriers overcome seven service errors to escape with the first set. After three more gave The Citadel its first three points of the second, a frustrated head coach Ron Sweet called time and the Terriers responded. Senior Taylor Baird hit the back line for an ace and went on a run to put distance the set.
Wofford committed just two serve errors the rest of the match and compensated with eight aces. Freshman Jen Espenschied led all players with three.
Junior libero Jessica Graham led all players with 11 digs and freshman setter Molly Mayo recorded a match-high 31 assists.
Wofford’s serving struggles kept The Citadel in the first set, giving the Bulldogs their first four points of the afternoon on errors. Citadel’s Ise d’Angelo later served five straight points to put the visitors on top 10-9.
It was back-and-forth from there. The Citadel held its lead at 16-15, until the Terriers scored three straight with the help of a Baird kill to force a Bulldog timeout ahead 18-16. The Terriers never trailed again, capping an 8-2 run with a Santoro kill to lead 23-18. Baird’s final kill of the frame put Wofford on top by a set.
Wofford’s serving problems continued to keep The Citadel around early in the second before Coach Sweet’s timeout put an end to it. Baird served four consecutive points for an 8-3 lead and the Bulldogs never got closer than three points the rest of the way. Baird found two aces in the set and used her second to give the Terriers a 19-11 cushion.
Freshman Sutton Alexander checked into the game and served to give Wofford its biggest lead of the set, 23-14. The Terriers then took a two-set lead on a block by Buterbaugh and Holland.
Wofford led the third for all but a point. The Citadel’s Moriah Smith scored the first point of the set before the Terriers answered with four straight on two Espenschied aces and kills by Santoro and Buterbaugh. The Bulldogs got back within a point at 8-7, but that’s when Wofford went on its biggest run of the match. The Terriers scored six straight to double-up the Bulldogs 14-7. The lead grew to as many as nine at 18-9 and 22-13.
The Wofford volleyball team has three crucial matches next week, beginning Wednesday against UNCG. Match time is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Benjamin Johnson Arena.