UNCG 3, North Carolina A&T 0
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Playing in its second match of the Spartan-Aggie Invitational, the UNCG volleyball team recorded a 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-6) triumph over crosstown rival North Carolina A&T Saturday morning inside Fleming Gymnasium. The Spartans improve to 6-2 with the win while the Aggies remain winless at 0-10.
The victory ensures that UNCG and Maryland-Eastern Shore will play for the tournament championship this evening at 6 p.m. in Fleming Gymnasium as the Hawks downed Alabama A&M in four sets Saturday morning across town at Moore Gymnasium and improved to 2-0 in the tournament.
The Blue and Gold continued its historical dominance in the series, improving its record to 20-2 with the sweep. The Spartans also improve to 42-2 all-time against teams from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.
After firing at a .111 clip in the first set, UNCG hit .364 and .444 in the final two frames to end up with a .292 hitting mark. The Aggies finished at .138 after hitting for a negative percentage (-.103) in the final stanza. The Spartans were also the superior side in kills (41-27), assists (40-26), aces (8-1), digs (48-38) and blocks (4.0-3.0).
Senior middle Vicky Harley was the top offensive performer in the contest, hitting .600 via 11 kills on 15 attempts with only two errors. Sophomore outside Jessica Brezwyn and freshman outside Ashley Muenchwere next in line with eight kills apiece. Defensively, Brezwyn led the way with 11 kills and was complemented by a 10-dig performance by junior libero Katherine Santiago (San Juan, Puerto Rico/Colegio Adianez).
UNCG found itself down early in the first set by a 9-5 margin. After a timeout, the Spartans responded with three-straight points to pull within one of the visitors. After a kill by Aleena McDaniel made it 12-8 in favor of A&T, UNCG rattled off six consecutive scores to establish a 14-12 cushion. A kill by Harley later made the score 18-15 and forced the Aggies to utilize their second timeout. A&T could not quite complete a comeback in the set as a Jasmine Jones service error ended the stanza in favor of the Blue and Gold 25-22.
Consecutive kills by Harley made the score 5-4 Spartans early in the second set, prompting a timeout from the Aggie bench. An ace by freshman outside Anna Romaniszyn gave UNCG a 10-7 edge, but A&T responded with a 5-2 run to tie the set at 12 points each. The Spartans dug down and scored four-straight points to build some breathing room and the Aggies could not quite catch up. UNCG headed into intermission with a 2-0 lead after closing out the second frame 25-18.
It was all Blue and Gold in the third set as the Spartans rung up an 11-2 lead and never looked back again. UNCG stretched the cushion to 16-2 before closing out the match by a 25-6 margin.
UNCG 3, Maryland-Eastern Shore 0
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG volleyball team capped an undefeated weekend by rolling past Maryland-Eastern Shore 3-0 (25-20, 25-13, 25-18) in the championship match of the Spartan-Aggie Invitational Saturday evening at Fleming Gymnasium. The Spartans did not drop a set in three matches on their way to the tournament title.
Alabama A&M secured a third-place finish by edging North Carolina A&T in five sets at Moore Gymnasium on the Aggies’ campus Saturday evening.
UNCG improves to 7-2 with the victory, matching the 2006 and 2010 teams with seven victories in its first nine matches. The Hawks drop to 4-6 with the setback.
Tournament MVP Vicky Harley was sensational again in the finale, racking up 13 kills on 20 attempts with three errors for a .500 hitting mark. She added three digs and three blocks to her offensive output. Sophomore outside Jessica Brezwyn led all players with 14 kills and hit .361 while redshirt junior middle Julia Westerbur ended up with 10 kills and a sizzling .692 hitting percentage. Brezwyn notched a double-double in the contest, adding 12 digs to her 14 kills.
Sophomore setter Sara Hohman produced her fifth double-double of the campaign, registering 38 assists and 10 digs while also hitting .800 (4k/0e/5ta) and tallying four aces. Hohman and Westerbur, in addition to Harley, were named to the All-Tournament Team.
The Spartans fired at a season-high .347 clip as a team, racking up 47 kills against 12 errors in 101 attempts. The Hawks hit just .163 with 28 kills on 104 attempts and 11 errors. UNCG held the upper hand in assists (47-25), aces (6-2), digs (59-36) and total blocks (5.0-2.0).
UNCG got off to a strong start in the first set, moving ahead 4-0 after two kills by Westerbur and a pair of aces by Hohman. UMES rallied to tie the score at eight, but a 6-2 run capped by a Brezwyn kill made it 14-10 in favor of the Spartans and prompted a Hawk timeout. The Blue and Gold was forced to call a timeout of its own when UMES answered with an identical 6-2 run.
However, UNCG was able to pull away in the end, securing a 25-20 margin of victory off a kill by Harley – one of her six in the set.
The second stanza was close at first, but it would not stay so for long. With the Blue and Gold leading 3-2, UNCG scored nine of the next 14 points to assume a 12-7 cushion and force a timeout by the visitors. The Spartans extended the lead to 19-10 on a solo block by Harley and would not be threatened again – sealing the second frame 25-13.
UNCG ran away with set three early, using six kills to ring up an 11-3 lead. The Hawks tried to rally, but their efforts would prove fruitless. The Spartans would lead 18-13 and 23-16 before closing it out 25-18 and clinching the sweep.
The Blue and Gold returns to the court Tuesday, making the short trip over to High Point University for a midweek match. First serve is set for 7 p.m. inside the Millis Center.
Lipscomb 3, ETSU 1
ETSU 3, Georgia Tech 2
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Last year was Tennessee. This year was Georgia Tech.
For a second straight year the ETSU volleyball team picked up a win over one the “power conferences” as the Bucs earned a clutch five-set win over the Yellow Jackets (17-25, 25-14, 25-23, 15-25, 15-10) on Saturday evening inside Allen Arena.
A night after seeing teammate Meredith Hardy reach a personal milestone with her 1,000th career kill, fellow senior Jamie Rutledge followed suit in the win over Georgia Tech. Rutledge became just the fifth player in program history to record 3,000 career assists after registering 21 against the Yellow Jackets. For her career, Rutledge has 3,001 assists, which ranks fifth in the ETSU record book, while also becoming the first player to accomplish the feat since Carey Cavanaugh did so in 2001.
Jamie Rutledge registered her 3,000th career assist, while Bethany Gesell and Ivey Rice both posted double-doubles as ETSU survived a thrilling five-set win over Georgia Tech to close out the Lipscomb Invitational on Saturday.
Rutledge finished with 21 assists, moving her career total to 3,001, while Gesell added 16 kills and 11 digs for her second career double-double. Joining Gesell was Rice’s 14-kill, 10-dig performance, resulting in her 16th career double-double. Fellow senior Meredith Hardy also gave the Blue and Gold a strong effort as she tallied 10 kills, eight blocks and three digs.
Defensively, ETSU had four players finish with double-digit digs as senior libero Katie Muey led the charge with 12. Freshman Rylee Milhorn just missed posting her first collegiate double-double after finishing with nine kills and 10 digs.
The stats were nearly identical for both teams as they finished with 58 kills each, but the Bucs had five fewer attack errors, 25-30, and out-blocked Georgia Tech, 12-10.
Despite getting off to a sluggish start and having the Yellow Jackets take the match to a pivotal fifth set, the Blue and Gold stayed strong and stuck to the game plan.
Inconsistent play doomed the Blue and Gold in the opening set as ETSU hit -.024 (11-12-41) and Georgia Tech came away with a 25-17 win. Briana Allmon – who finished with a career-high 13 kills against Lipscomb earlier in the day – gave the Bucs a spark early on as she accounted for ETSU’s first three points, but with the score knotted at seven, Georgia Tech went on an 8-2 run to take control of the set. ETSU inched within five late in the stanza, 22-17, but the Yellow Jackets won the final three points to claim the opener.
The Bucs came alive in the second as the Blue and Gold closed out the frame on an 18-5 run to pull even in the match, 25-14. The surge was sparked by 11 unanswered points, courtesy of the outstanding serving by Kristen Favre and the powerful hitting from Gesell and Milhorn. The Buccaneer duo combined for five kills during the 11-0 blitzkrieg as Gesell had three and Milhorn smashed home a pair of her own. The game turned with Georgia Tech leading 9-7 and ETSU stepped up with its 11-0 run to dominate the set. The Bucs hit an astonishing .452 (17-3-31), while Gesell was 6-for-7 in her attack attempts and Milhorn connected on four of her seven swings.
ETSU carried over its momentum from intermission into the third set as the Bucs won 10 of the first 15 points, and despite falling behind by two late, the Blue and Gold rose to the challenge to pull out a 25-23 win. After the Bucs led 10-5, the Yellow Jackets used a 13-6 run to go ahead, 18-16; however, ETSU was prime for the comeback as kills by Milhorn and Hardy quickly tied the set at 18. The frame saw one more tie at 19-all, but Hardy pushed all the momentum to ETSU’s side with a kill and the Bucs never relinquished the lead.
The Blue and Gold were unable to sustain their run as Georgia Tech led wire-to-wire and forced the decisive fifth set with a 25-15 win in the fourth, but ETSU did an excellent job leaving that set aside and jumped out to a blazing start in the fifth. The Bucs won seven of the first 10 points, but Georgia Tech threw one last punch at the Blue and Gold by pulling within one, 10-9. Coach Devine used one of her two timeouts to settle down her squad and the mini break worked as ETSU closed out the match on a 5-1 run to finish off the victory. The Bucs hit .312 (8-3-16) and held Georgia Tech to a .053 (6-5-19) attack percentage in the fifth set.
Georgia Tech was led by Teegan Van Gunst as she finished with 22 kills and 13 digs, while twin sister Annika Van Gunst also provided the Yellow Jackets with a double-double in the setback. Annika ended with 12 kills and 14 digs.
With the loss, Georgia Tech moved to 4-5 on the campaign, while it marked ETSU’s third win against the Yellow Jackets and the first since defeating the ACC foe in four sets back in 1990. The Bucs improved to 4-6 following the win.
Lipscomb had two players register double-doubles and the Bisons pulled out a four-set win (14-25, 25-22, 22-25, 18-25) over ETSU on Saturday afternoon inside Allen Arena.
Kayla Ostrom finished with 54 assists and 14 digs and Lauren Ford added 21 kills and 11 digs to pace the Bisons in the win.
The Bucs were led by Briana Allmon’s career-high 13 kills, while Meredith Hardy hit .636 (7-0-11) and Bethany Gesell finished with 10 kills. Hardy also posted four digs and three blocks.
As a team, the Blue and Gold had no answer for Lipscomb’s offensive attack as the Bisons were plus-26 in kills, 68-42. Lipscomb hit .289 (68-22-159) compared to ETSU’s .185 (42-18-130) clip, while the Bisons were also plus-13 in digs, 64-51. Katie Muey led ETSU with 19.
Lipscomb never trailed in the first set and cruised to a 25-14 win. Both teams had 29 attack attempts in the opener, but the Bucs couldn’t slow down the Bisons offense. Lipscomb out-hit ETSU, .483-103, while the Purple and Gold were also plus-10 in kills, 18-8 and plus-7 in digs, 14-7.
The Bucs responded in the second as the Blue and Gold used strong blocking, combined with a pair of 4-0 runs, to capture a 25-22 victory. ETSU took its first lead of the match early in the frame when Hardy and Gesell combined for a block, giving the Bucs a 3-2 advantage. From there, play remained tight but with the score knotted at 13, ETSU mounted the first 4-0 run to go ahead, 17-13; however, Lipscomb answered with a 6-2 spurt to even things at 19. Fortunately, the Bucs kept their composure and rattled off four straight scores to go ahead, 23-19, and after the Bisons pulled within one, ETSU won the final two points to finish its three-point win. Overall, the teams combined for 12 ties and five lead changes in the second, while the Bucs totaled 4.5 blocks in the frame.
The third set was another nail-biter, but Lipscomb managed to win seven of the final 11 points and held on for a 25-22 win en route to taking a 2-1 lead in the match. The Bisons opened some breathing room early in the frame by using a 4-0 spurt to gain a 9-5 lead, but ETSU clawed its way back to tie things up at 16, following a service ace by Gesell. From there, the set saw one more tie at 18-all, but the Bucs were unable to pull ahead as Lipscomb used its final surge to pull out the victory.
The nip-and-tuck theme carried over into the fourth until Lipscomb rallied for a 25-18 win. With ETSU leading 15-14, the Bisons mounted an 11-3 run to finish off the Blue and Gold in four. Lipscomb jumped out of the gates in hurry as the Bisons won four of the first five points, but with ETSU trailing by three, the Bucs came out of a timeout on fire by winning four consecutive points to take their first lead of the stanza, 14-13. Unfortunately, the Blue and Gold were unable to build off the surge and Lipscomb capitalized with its final run of the match.
Lipscomb improved to 6-3 following the win and the Bisons close out their tournament Saturday night against Utah.
The Bucs head back to the Music City on Tuesday night as ETSU takes on Tennessee State at 7 p.m. EDT inside Kean Hall.
Furman 3, Gonzaga 2
Wyoming 3, Furman 1
LARAMIE, Wyo. – On the final day of play at the UniWyo Wyoming Invite, Furman volleyball rallied from an 0-2 deficit to defeat Gonzaga, 3-2 (31-33, 25-20, 21-25, 27-25, 15-11), before falling to tournament-host Wyoming, 3-1 (17-25, 19-25, 29-27, 9-25) on Saturday night. The Paladins (6-4) return to South Carolina having won five of their last six matches.
Ashton Gregory and Andrea Fisher were each named to the UniWyo Wyoming Invite All-Tournament team, the third All-Tournament Team honor for Gregory this season.
The early game against Gonzaga was one of the Paladins’ most exciting of the year, marking their sixth-straight five-set match and fifth-straight five-set win. Furman was led by Andrea Fisher, who put down a career-high 25 kills (.300 hitting percentage) with eight digs and two service aces. Amelia Bohlander and Ashton Gregory each added seven kills and eight blocks (a career high for Bohlander), while Christen Sikora put down nine kills and a .533 hitting percentage. Meg DeMaar recorded another 20+ dig game with 25 and Jo Wilks turned in 55 assists.
The teams traded points all through set one, with no team getting a larger lead than four, until Furman called a timeout leading 23-22. Furman and Gonzaga then traded points 16 times before the Bulldogs finished off the set with two straight points to take an exciting set one, 33-31.
Furman held on to multiple two point leads in set two until the Paladins stretched the lead to three at 19-16. Following a service error, Gonzaga then used a 7-1 run to close out set two, 25-20, and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Paladins again opened the early led in set two, pulling out to a 14-9 advantage. Four-straight Bulldog points forced a Furman timeout, and the Paladins were able to hold off that Gonzaga rally and continue to stretch their lead, forcing a Bulldog timeout at 22-17. Furman had set point at 24-18 and eventually closed it out on a kill by Andrea Fisher to take set three, 25-21, and force a fourth set.
The teams traded points again in set four, before Furman was the first to call a timeout after Gonzaga cut the Paladin lead to one at 13-12. The teams went back and forth again until it was the Bulldogs who called a timeout, trailing Furman 21-18. Gonzaga pulled to within three again at 24-21, before scoring three-straight points to tie the game at 24. Furman capitalized on a Gonzaga service error and two Christen Sikora kills to take set four, 27-25, and push the set to a fifth game, for the sixth match in a row.
It was Gonzaga who opened up the early lead in set five, but following a timeout, Furman used an 8-3 run to take an 13-10 lead. The Bulldogs came out of their timeout and cut the lead to two at 13-11, but a Gregory/Bohlander block and a Bulldog error gave the Paladins the set five win, 15-11, and push their match winning streak to five.
Ashton Gregory led the Paladins in the night cap against Wyoming with 17 kills, a .364 hitting percentage and six blocks. Andrea Fisher turned in 11 kills and nine digs, while Christen Sikora and Kasey Hohlen and six and five digs, respectively. Meg DeMaar turned in another double-digit dig performance with 16 and Jo Wilks tallied 38 assists.
Wyoming took the first two sets, 25-17 and 25-19, to put Furman in an 0-2 hole once again. The Cowgirls continued to hold the momentum in set three, taking a 6-1 lead until Furman battled back with a 7-1 run to take an 8-7 lead and force a Wyoming timeout. The teams traded points until Furman used a 4-0 run to push their lead to 16-12 to force another Cowgirl timeout.
Furman pushed the lead to 20-16 before Wyoming battled back to tie the match at 20. The teams traded points 14 times until Furman used an Andrea Fisher kill and Wyoming attack error to take set three, 29-27, and force a fourth.
The Cowgirls dominated set four, 25-9, to win the match, 3-1, and halt Furman’s five-game winning streak.
The Paladins are back in action on Thursday, September 18, as they travel to Clinton, S.C., to face Presbyterian College at 7:00 p.m.
Chattanooga 3, Mississippi Valley State 0
Murray State 3, Chattanooga 2
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team ended its first home tournament of the season, the Chattanooga Classic, with a 2-1 record Saturday. Chattanooga scored a 3-0 victory over Mississippi Valley State early Saturday morning before falling 3-2 in a hard-fought five-set match to undefeated Murray State.
Sophomores Kristy Wieser and Nicole Sumida were each named to the all-tournament team for their performances over the weekend. Wieser led the Mocs with 33 kills, hitting a team-best 2.45 over the three-match tourney. She also totaled 49 digs and three blocks. Sumida was a brick wall at the net, recording a team-best 12 blocks while also collecting 24 kills.
The Mocs scored their second win of the weekend with a sweep of Mississippi Valley (25-9, 25-14, 25-8). As a team, Chattanooga hit .489 with their best-hitting set coming first (.621). UTC only allowed the Devilettes to hit above .000 once, coming in the second set with a .135 percentage.
Outscoring MVS 75-31, junior Briana Reid led the attack with 10 kills and a .600 hitting percentage. Freshman Lauren Greenspoon and Anne Bachmann each totaled double-digit assists (23 and 18, respectively), while liberos Catherine Chason and Melissa Green totaled 14 and 11 digs for the defense.
Chattanooga’s only loss of the tournament came in a nail-biting five-frame contest with Murray State to close out the Chattanooga Classic. The Mocs took the first and third sets, 25-23 and 29-27, while the Racers took the second and fourth 25-19 and 25-14.
The deciding set was pushed to extra points with both teams tied at 15, but Murray State was able to nab a couple of quick points to walk away with the victory.
Among the highlights of the melee, three Mocs totaled double-digit kills – Wieser with 12, Allie Davenport with 11 and Sumida with 10. Wieser’s effort was a double-double, also totaling 20 digs, and Sumida put up seven blocks. The Mocs out-blocked the Racers 13.0-8.0 during the match, but Murray was able to out-dig UTC 117-88.
In other action, Murray State won 3-0 over Wright State to go undefeated in the Scenic City. However, Wright State managed to pick up a 3-0 win over Mississippi Valley State. The Devillettes were winless in Chattanooga, going 0-3.
Racers’ outside hitter Taylor Olden was named tournament MVP, while team mates Alyssa Lelm and Sam Bedard were each named all-tournament. Mississippi Valley’s Hallee Gayten and Wright State’s Marisa Aiello joined Lelm, Bedard, Sumida and Wieser on the all-tournament team.
The Mocs are back at home next weekend to host the Scenic City Showdown – Presented by Hampton Inn & Suites. Featuring the same format as the Chattanooga Classic, UTC welcomes South Carolina State, UT Martin and Stetson to campus for two days of volleyball.
Clemson 3, Wofford 0
Wofford 3, William & Mary 2
CLEMSON, S.C. – Led by a career-high 23 kills from freshman Bella Santoro and 21 from senior Taylor Baird, the Wofford volleyball team defeated William & Mary in a five-set thriller (22-25, 25-16, 26-28, 25-18, 15-11) to close out the Clemson Classic on Saturday evening inside Jervey Gym.
Wofford (3-6) trailed two sets to one after dropping a heartbreaking third in extras. Faced with needing the final two sets, the Terriers jumped ahead 15-8 in the fourth and held off a mini-rally to force their first five-set match of the season.
In each of the first four sets, Wofford was the first team to reach 15 points. They did it again in the tiebreak, grabbing the lead for the first time at 5-4 and using a 9-3 to take a commanding 12-6 lead. William & Mary (4-6) closed the deficit to 13-10, but junior Liz Buterbaugh put the match away with Wofford's final two kills, finishing the match with 11.
In all, four Terriers finished the match with double-figure kills -- freshman Danni Densford had 12 and hit .500 (12-2-20) to join Santoro, Baird and Buterbaugh. Santoro added to her day with a career-high 17 digs to post a double-double. Junior Jessica Graham had a team-high 20 digs
Meanwhile, freshman setter Molly Mayo finished the match with a season-high 69 assists -- one assist shy of the program's all-time single-game record. She added 10 digs for her first collegiate double-double.
The Wofford volleyball team hosts The Spartanburg Courtyard Classic next Friday and Saturday at Benjamin Johnson Arena. Wofford will welcome Gardner-Webb, NC A&T, Tennessee Tech and USC Upstate for the five-team tournament.
The Terriers began day two of the Clemson Classic against the host Tigers on Saturday afternoon, falling in a competitive three-set match.
Wofford gave Clemson a lot to handle in the first two sets. The Terriers led three different times until the Tigers went on a 4-0 run to go in front 17-14 and hold the advantage. In the second, Wofford came back from down 20-17 to level the frame at 21. The final stages of the set were tied from 21 to 24, when Clemson squeaked it out by scoring the final two points.
Santoro posted a season-high 17 kills with two aces to lead the Wofford attack. The Greer native led all players in kills and points (19.0), adding nine digs to wind up one shy of a double-double.
Mayo earned a match-high 36 assists and junior Jessica Graham went for a match-high 13 digs.
The Terriers were outhit .196 (40-19-107) to .374 (40-6-91) by its Atlantic Coast Conference opponent. Clemson had just six attack errors the entire match and forced 19 for Wofford. Ten of Wofford's errors came off Tiger blocks, while the Terriers were held without a block.
Both sides gave the Clemson crowd an offensive display in the first. The Terriers hit .300 and Clemson answered by posting a mark of .481. Santoro had six of Wofford's 14 kills and broke a 10-all tie with one of them to put the Terriers in front. Wofford's final lead of the set came from another Santoro kill, 14-13, but the Tigers scored four straight to lead 17-14 and force Wofford's first timeout. The Terriers cut the gap to as little as two at 20-18, 22-20 and 23-21, but Clemson used a block to earn set point and converted.
Freshman Alex Holland posted the first kill and Mayo found an ace to give the Terriers a quick 3-0 start in the second. Clemson responded, tying the set 4-4 and using a 5-0 run to go back on top 6-4. Neither side took a lead of more than three points the rest of the set. In all, there were 12 ties – the final one coming at 24 on a Santoro kill to save the set for the Terriers. Beta Dumancic followed with a kill to give the Tigers another crack at the set and setter Kate Federico attacked the first ball she saw to put Clemson in front by a pair.
The Terriers ran out of gas in the third. Mayo used one of her three kills to tie the set at two, but Clemson's block came alive, sparking a 10-2 run to put the home side in front 12-4. The lead extended to 10 for the first time at 18-8 and hit its largest margin at 24-12.
Wofford went to five sets for the first time this season in its final game of the Clemson Classic against William & Mary, defeating the Tribe 15-11 in the tiebreak in what was the first all-time meeting between the two schools.
Santoro reached season-highs of 23 kills and 17 digs to achieve her third double-double of the season. She also finished with match- and career-highs of 25.5 points via an ace and three block assists.
Santoro hit.277 to lead a group of four Terriers that finished with double-figure kills. Baird had 21 (.286), Densford had a career-high 12 (.500) and Buterbaugh posted 11. It marked the first time four Terriers finished with 10 or more kills since last Nov. 8 against Elon.
Wofford completed the match with 75 kills – the first time the Terriers reached 75 since 2007 against The Citadel – and outhit William & Mary .247 to .187. Mayo assisted a career-high 69 of Wofford’s kills and added 10 digs for her first collegiate double-double.
The five-set thriller played tight from the beginning. Wofford held big leads in each of the five sets, but let the first and the third slip away.
The opener saw a quick timeout called by William & Mary with the Terriers out to a 9-4 lead. The lead grew to as many as six on multiple occasions, with the final half-dozen advantage coming at 17-11 off a kill by sophomore Ellie Tallman.
Back came the Tribe, using a 9-2 run to tie the score at 19 and taking their first lead of the set at 20-19. Santoro put down a kill to tie it back up at 20, but the Tribe scored five of the final six points to steal the first.
The Terriers were on fire to begin the second, scoring the first nine points with the help of three Baird kills. It gave Wofford more than enough breathing room to control the set, as William & Mary only ever got as close as seven the rest of the way. Another Baird kill and Tribe attack error put Wofford ahead by 10 at 17-7, and Densford slammed the final kill to level the match at a set apiece.
Again, Wofford took a big lead in the third, using an 11-3 run with kills by Baird, Santoro and Densford to go on top 12-5. Santoro pushed the Terrier lead to 18-12 when William & Mary came storming back. The Tribe scored three straight and capped a 9-3 run with a kill by Mallory Brickerd to tie the set at 21. The sides went back and forth from there with ties from 22 to 26. Santoro gave the Terriers set point with a kill to make it 26-25, but Stephanie Paul responded to save it for the Tribe. The block won the set for William & Mary as Brickerd, Paul and Carolyn Albright combined to reject consecutive attempts by Densford and Santoro.
After holding big leads in all three sets, the Terriers now had their backs against the wall, needing to win sets four and five to avoid going winless on the weekend. The trend of great starts continued. Buterbaugh put down a kill to make it 6-1 and Wofford grabbed a 9-2 lead off a W&M attack error. This time, as in the second, Wofford held its ground. William & Mary rallied to turn a 17-10 set into 17-15, but the Terriers responded. Back-to-back kills by Santoro stopped the comeback and Wofford re-extended its lead five at 21-16. Kills by Santoro, Densford and Holland followed, making it 24-18, and the Terriers won it when Brickerd’s attack landed out of bounds.
The marathon reached the deciding set. Dessi Koleva gave the Tribe an early 3-1 lead, but two kills from Baird leveled the tiebreak at four. Wofford’s run continued with a Santoro kill and two aces from Buterbaugh, giving the Terriers an 8-4 lead at the changeover.
Brickerd got the Tribe to within three at 9-6 and Wofford was given a little scare after an attack error by Holland and another Brickerd kill cut the Terrier lead back to three at 13-10. However, Wofford’s middle blocker, Buterbaugh, slammed one to give Wofford match point, and she put it away with the final kill of the match.
UT Martin 3, Western Carolina 1
Western Carolina 3, Drake 0
MARTIN, Tenn. - Senior Caitlin Piechota turned in a pair of double-doubles on the final day of the Skyhawk Invitational as the Western Carolina volleyball team went 1-1 during Saturday's action. The Catamounts lost a 3-1 match to host Tennessee-Martin before they downed Drake University 3-0.
The loss for Drake was just the third suffered by the Bulldogs this season. The Bulldogs are now 8-3 on the year while the Catamounts improved to 4-5 and Tennessee-martin moved to 5-4.
Following the completion of the tournament, Western Carolina landed two players on the all-tournament team. Piechota was joined by Addy George among those recognized for their play over the two-day event.
Piechota was the engine that pushed the Catamounts Saturday afternoon as she turned in 18 kills and 17 digs against the Skyhawks before dishing out 13 kills and 10 digs in the three-set victory over the Bulldogs. Piechota now has 1,048 career digs which rank her 14th all-time at Western. She also has 944 kills which is 16th best in Catamount history.
Classmate Jordan Timmermann nearly had a pair of double-doubles as well as she came up with 12 kills and eight digs against the Skyhawks and nine kills and 12 digs against the Bulldogs. With her 21 kills on Saturday, Timmermann moved into the top-10 in WCU history with 1,048 kills. She will need 94 more to tie Cathrine Sawyers (1992-96) for ninth on the list.
Other notable performances included WCU's pair of setters, freshman Jo-Leigh Vervelde and junior Cristina Nazario, who each had outstanding performances against Tennessee-Martin and Drake. Vervelde had six kills, 22 assists, 11 digs and a block against UT-Martin while Nazario notched six kills, 26 assists, three service aces, six digs and a block in the match. Vervelde had another double-double against Drake with three kills, 20 assists and 12 digs while Nazario added a double-double with three kills, 22 assists and 13 digs.
Junior libero Elyssa Mulheron led the team in digs during both matches. She had 21 digs and a pair of service aces against UT-Martin while turning in 18 digs and one service ace against Drake.
Senior Addy George had double-digit kills against Drake with 11 while also putting up a pair of blocks. She had nine kills against the Skyhawks and one block.
Western won the opening set against host UT-Martin 25-22 before the Skyhawks rattled off three-straight sets, 32-30, 25-21 and 25-17. In the Drake match it was all Western as the Catamounts took the first set 25-12, the second 25-22 and the third 25-23.
The Catamounts will return to action this Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. as they travel up the road to UNC Asheville.
LSU 3, Samford 1
TALLAHASEE, Fla. - The Samford University volleyball team closed out the final day of the Seminole Classic with a hard fought 3-1 defeat to Louisiana State University inside Tully Gym on Saturday, September 13. Sophomore Erin Bognar recorded a career-high 18 kills on 43 attempts in the contest.
The Bulldogs (3-6) stood toe-to-toe with the Tigers (2-3) in the first set before the team conceded a 25-23 decision. Bognar sparked the SU offense and recorded six kills on 10 attempts to lead the way while senior Michaela Reesor paced the defense with six kills in the initial set of the match.
Bognar continued to press offensively and led Samford to a 28-26 win in the second set to tie the match 1-1. The St. Louis, Missouri native tacked on another six kills to take her total to 12 for the match.
SU lost its momentum in the third set which allowed LSU to reclaim the lead in the match 2-1 after taking the third set 25-7. The Tigers posted an astounding .647 attack percentage thanks to 11 kills on 17 attempts to take the set.
Samford battled back in the fourth set after being down early to LSU. The Bulldogs eventually claimed the lead 23-22 but the Tigers rallied for three-straight points to capture the victory in both the set and the match.
The Bulldogs will hit the road again for another invitational, this time at the University of Mississippi Rebel Classic on September 19-20. Samford will face Lamar University, Jackson State and the host institution Mississippi during the two-day event.
Jacksonville State 3, Mercer 1
OXFORD, Miss. – Mercer junior Molly Locke and freshman Claire Walizcek both registered double-double performances on Saturday as the volleyball team fell to Jacksonville State, 3-1 (24-26, 25-18, 26-24, 28-26).
Mercer's loss sent the team to 3-6 on the season and concluded the Bears' showing at the Magnolia Invitational hosted by Ole Miss. Jacksonville State improved to 4-6 overall.
Locke collected a match-high 18 kills and 10 digs while Walizcek tallied 23 assists and 16 digs in the losing effort. Locke's 18 kills led three Mercer players with double-figure kill totals, as senior Caroline Carlton and junior Monica Johnson were credited with 11 and 10, respectively.
The back-and-forth affair featured 26 tie scores and 11 lead changes, but Jacksonville State was able to rebound from a first set loss to capture its second win over Mercer this season.
Locke earned five of her kills in the first set to help the Bears take the early advantage by virtue of a 26-24 victory. In the frame, the teams were tied at 24-24 before a kill for Mercer's Jordan Gollon and a JSU attacking error concluded play.
In the second set, the Gamecocks rattled off six-straight scores to break away from a slim 13-11 advantage and ultimately tie the match at 1-1. In the third set, the teams battled to another 24-24 tie before a Mercer service error and a JSU kill ended the set.
Facing elimination in the fourth set, Mercer battled back from a 15-10 deficit to tie the match at 18-18. From there the teams played evenly to a 26-26 tie before the Gamecocks sealed the win with back-to-back points.
Sophomore Hannah Noon dished out 19 assists and added a dig on Saturday. Her teammate Tori Penrod tied for the match-high with 18 digs while also contributing six assists.
Mercer returns to action next week at the Lady Vol Classic hosted by Tennessee.