Jacksonville State 3, Mercer 0
Mercer 3, Alabama A&M 0
TROY, Ala. – The Mercer volleyball team earned a split against Jacksonville State and Alabama A&M in Friday’s final day action at the Troy Invitational. The Bears fell to Jacksonville State 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-20) before rebounding to sweep Alabama A&M 3-0 (25-13, 25-11, 25-13).
Mercer’s split pushed the team’s record to 3-3 on the season while Jacksonville State moved to 2-4 and Alabama A&M fell to 1-5. Junior Molly Locke was named to the Troy Invitational All-Tournament team after averaging 3.64 kills, 3.0 digs and 0.45 blocks per set in Mercer’s three matches.
Locke collected her fourth double-double of the year in the win over Alabama A&M, smashing 14 kills to go along with 10 digs. Locke also added a service ace to her stat line in the winning effort.
Freshman Claire Walizcek handed out a match-high 20 assists in the win, helping Mercer’s offense record a .405 hitting percentage for the match. Senior Cara Tripp was a perfect five-for-five on attack attempts while sophomore Jordan Gollon was also impressive at the net with six kills on 12 swings.
The Bears were in command from the start, using a 10-4 run at the beginning of the first set to seize control. In the second set, Mercer scored the first four points and never trailed en route to the 25-11 win. The final frame was tied 6-6 before Mercer employed a 7-2 run to break away from the Bulldogs.
Mercer was limited to a .069 hitting percentage in the opening match of the day against the Gamecocks. Leading the way offensively in the losing effort was sophomore Ellie James, who put down seven of her 14 attacking attempts with just a single error for a team-leading .429 hitting percentage.
The opening set was a back-and-forth affair, with 10 tie scores and six lead changes. With the score tied 22-22, Jacksonville State got a kill from Brianna Glidewell and a service ace from Emily Rutherford to gain separation. Moments later, Glidewill sealed the set win with her second kill of the stanza.
In the second set and third sets Jacksonville State got off to strong starts. In the second set, Mercer was unable to recover from an initial 3-0 deficit while the third set saw the Bears fall behind 7-1 before surrendering the match.
Mercer returns to action next weekend at the Magnolia Invitational hosted by Ole Miss. The Bears are set to open the event against the host Rebels on Friday at 1 p.m.
The Citadel 3, North Carolina A&T 1
CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Citadel rallied from an early opening set loss to emerge with a 3-1 victory over N.C. A&T by scores of 25-27, 25-19, 25-17 and 25-14 at McAlister Field House on Friday evening. The Bulldogs, who moved to 2-2 on the season, were led by the play of seniors Ise d'Angelo (18 kills) and Lauren Hurt (13).
Collectively the Bulldogs finished with a .286 attack percentage, driving home 60 kills against only 18 errors. Joining the duo of d'Angelo and Hurt with double figure kills was Moriah Smith. Meanwhile, The Citadel's defensive efforts were led by Amanda Rudnik (17 digs) and d'Angelo (10). Teammate Rachel Keefer handed out 53 assists.
N.C. A&T (0-5) was led offensively by the trio of Aleena McDaniel (16 kills), Te'Borah Hawkins (12) and Brooke Stamnes (10). The Aggies defensive efforts were highlighted by the play of Liz Martino (13 digs) and Ashley Johnson (12).
N.C. A&T established a 13-9 lead early in the opening set following a series of unforced errors by The Citadel. After moving ahead by six, 21-15, with Stamnes in serve, the Aggies surrendered nine of the next 12 points to make for a 24-24 contest. After a d'Angelo kill knotted the game at 25-25, the Aggies managed to convert the final two points of the set, including a Stamnes kill, to complete the two-point win.
N.C. A&T's offense maintained its rhythm early in the second set as a series of kills by McDaniel made for a 13-9 lead. The lead remained at four, 16-12, following a strike by McDaniel, before a series of kills by Mallory Moore, Hurt and d'Angelo provided The Citadel with a 19-16 advantage. Three unforced errors by the Aggies along with kills by Moriah Smith and d'Angelo provided the 25-19 margin.
The two teams battled through eight ties to reach a 16-16 deadlock on a kill by d'Angelo. After Moriah Smith gave the Dogs a slim one-point lead, a service ace by d'Angelo forced the Aggies to spend their first timeout of the set. D'Angelo continued her mastery in serve as she forged The Citadel ahead 24-16 before McDaniel drove home the final point for N.C. A&T. Hurt gave the Cadets a 2-1 lead in the match with a kill for the 25-17 victory.
The Citadel combined the momentum from the end of the third set with three kills by d'Angelo to assume a 10-6 advantage. Three more strikes by d'Angelo and a service ace by Moore pushed the lead to seven before a series of errors allowed N.C. A&T to pull within 16-10 of the Dogs. The Citadel allowed just four points over the remainder of the set to complete the 25-14 win.
The Citadel's two-day tournament continues on Saturday with four matches between Stetson, Charleston Southern, The Citadel and N.C. A&T. The first match of the day is set for 10 a.m., followed by contests at 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 6 p.m.
UNCG 3, USC Upstate 2
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Senior middle hitter Vicky Harley tallied a career-high 21 kills Friday as the UNCG volleyball team downed USC Upstate in five sets (22-25, 25-17, 25-22, 22-25, 15-12) in its first match of the Liberty Invitational.
The Blue and Gold hit .375 with 11 kills in the deciding frame to come away with the victory.
Harley finished with 34 attempts in the match and made just two errors for a stout .559 hitting mark. She also registered a match-high six blocks for good measure. Sophomore outside hitter Jessica Brezwyn notched her first double-double of the season with 16 kills and 17 digs and senior middle hitter Kelsey Sidney joined her teammates in double figures with 13 kills to go along with four blocks.
Sophomore setter Sara Hohman registered a double-double for the second-straight match as she dished out a career high-matching 59 assists as well as picking up 12 digs.
Defensively, junior libero Katherine Santiago racked up a season-high 30 digs – just three short of her career high set last year against Murray State. Freshman outside hitter Anna Romaniszyn and junior defensive specialist Leah Wells set personal campaign highs as well with 20 and 10 digs respectively.
UNCG (3-1) finished with the upper hand in hitting percentage (.199 to .144), kills (62-61), assists (61-57), blocks (11.0-3.0) and digs (109-99) while taking advantage of 30 USC Upstate (2-3) attacking errors. The Blue and Gold finished with double-digit blocks for the third-straight match. In terms of serving, the teams produced five aces apiece.
USC Upstate run away with the first set in the early goings, building a 14-4 lead and forcing a UNCG timeout. However, the Blue and Gold found its legs and scored 16 of the next 22 points to pull within 24-20 and prompt another Upstate timeout. UNCG scored two more points on kills by Brezwyn and Sidney before USC Upstate used a kill of its own to clinch the first frame 25-22.
Upstate jumped out to a 9-5 advantage in the second stanza after a Harley attacking error, but the Spartans charged right back and put together a 9-4 run, which was capped by a kill from junior middle Julia Westerbur, to pull ahead 14-13. Upstate led once more at 15-14 but could not hold off the Blue and Gold as UNCG rode the serving of Wells to a 20-16 edge and put away Upstate to the tune of 25-17.
The third set saw the teams battle back and forth through much of it. However, a kill by Shannon Weiss put USC Upstate in front 18-15. UNCG surged back, scoring four-straight points to move back in front by one. Harley had three kills during the mini run. With the score tied at 20, Harley put down a kill and tallied an ace to give the Blue and Gold a 22-20 lead that it would not relinquish. Brezwyn did the honors at the end of the stanza, notching two kills for the final two Spartan points and giving UNCG a 25-22 margin of victory.
The Blue and Gold tried to put the match away in the fourth frame, but with the score knotted at 21, Upstate was able to score four of the last five points to slip away and send it to a deciding set.
After a 4-4 deadlock to begin the fifth stanza, Harley put down a kill to make it 5-4 UNCG. Upstate battled back to tie the score at six before a kill by Sidney and a USC Upstate error gave the Spartans an 8-6 edge. USCU drew within 11-10 on a kill by Alexa Lagaly but Westerbur and Harley countered with kills of their own to put the set out of reach. UNCG turned the 13-10 advantage into 15-12 win to clinch the match.
The Spartans return to action at the Liberty Invitational tomorrow with a pair of matches. UNCG will take on Howard at 11:30 a.m. before closing the tournament against the host Flames at 7:30 p.m.
William & Mary 3, ETSU 2
ETSU 3, George Mason 0
FAIRFAX, Va. – The ETSU volleyball team finished day one of the Patriot Invitational on a strong note as the Bucs swept past tournament host George Mason (25-16, 25-21, 25-17) on Friday night inside the RAC.
ETSU bounced back in a record-setting way after suffering the five-set heartbreaking loss to William and Mary (26-24, 20-25, 26-24, 25-20, 16-14) in its first match of the tournament on Friday.
Seniors Bethany Gesell and Katie Muey, and sophomores Kristen Favre and Briana Allmon all posted career highs in the setback to the Tribe. Gesell recorded a career-high 23 kills and Muey finished with a career-best 31 digs, while Favre dished out 57 of the Bucs’ 63 assists, marking a new best for the sophomore setter. Allmon also put up career numbers in kills (7) and digs (18).
However, more records continued to fall in the nightcap as ETSU’s stellar defensive presence caused George Mason fits the entire match. As a team, the Bucs set a new three-set match record for block assists after finishing with 26, while senior Meredith Hardy kept adding to her impressive resume. Hardy, who already owns the A-Sun all-time blocks mark, broke ETSU’s total blocks and block assists records in a three-set match Friday night. Hardy finished with 11 block assists and tied her career-high with 12 total blocks.
Offensively, the Blue and Gold were led by senior Ivey Rice and freshman Rylee Milhorn as they combined for 20 of ETSU’s 38 kills against George Mason. Both Rice and Milhorn totaled 10 kills, while senior Jamie Rutledge directed the offense with 34 assists.
Following the split, ETSU improved to 2-3 on the young season, while the Bucs close out the tournament against Maryland (12 p.m.) and Lehigh (4 p.m.) on Saturday.
After not being able to close out its first match on Friday, the ETSU volleyball team made sure the outcome wasn’t in jeopardy against the Patriots as the Bucs swept past George Mason in the tournament nightcap.
The Blue and Gold led for the majority of the match and used their strong defensive tactics to silence the Patriots. As a team, ETSU finished with a season-high 14 blocks and were plus-10 in digs, 55-45. Katie Muey and Ashleigh Shain combined for 31 of those digs. Muey tallied a match-high 18 digs and Shain contributed with 13.
In addition to its top-notch defense, the Bucs tied a season high with seven service aces, courtesy of three by Milhorn and two from Ivey Rice.
The Bucs never trailed in the opening set as ETSU stormed out of the gates early to a take a 7-1 lead and cruised its way to the nine-point win, 25-16. As a team, the Blue and Gold hit .400 (15-3-30) in the frame and were led by the strong arms of Rice and Milhorn as they combined to hit .500 (10-2-16). Rice paced the offense with six kills and Milhorn added four of her own. The dominate duo was the driving force behind ETSU’s strong start as they had two kills each in the opening 7-1 run.
In the second set, the Bucs again never trailed and took a commanding 2-0 lead in the match, thanks to a 25-21 win. Play with nip-and-tuck early on, but with ETSU leading by one (7-6), the Blue and Gold registered a 10-4 run to extend their advantage to seven after a service ace by Shain made it a 17-10 score. The Patriots didn’t go down quietly as George Mason won eight of the next 10 points to pull within one, 19-18, but the Bucs closed the set on a 6-3 spurt to secure the four-point win. Milhorn continued her strength on offense as she totaled five kills in the frame, while Bethany Gesell added five of her own.
Like the second set, play was tightly contested in the early stages, but a 7-3 ETSU run midway through the frame set the tone and carried the Bucs to a sweep, 25-17. With the Blue and Gold ahead, 9-8, ETSU built a five-point lead thanks to its run, 16-11, and George Mason never responded. Hardy was the driving force during the surge as she recorded six blocks in the third set, while the Bucs held the Patriots to a -.023 (10-11-44) attack percentage in the final frame.
For the match, George Mason only hit .035 (27-23-115) and was led by Jessie Greenslade’s eight kills.
Following her 12 blocks, Hardy – who has now recorded at least one block in 98 straight matches – inched closer to breaking ETSU’s all-time blocks record. The Kingsport, Tenn. native has 502 career blocks, which is 36 shy of passing Jennifer Pennington (1993-96) for the overall record. Hardy also only needs 16 more kills to reach the 1,000 for her career.
George Mason has now lost its first five matches to start the season.
Seniors Bethany Gesell and Katie Muey both recorded career highs, but despite winning two of the first three sets, ETSU couldn’t hold off William and Mary as the Tribe rallied for a five-set win.
Gesell paced the Buccaneer offense with a career-high 23 kills, while Muey totaled a career-best 31 digs, but miscues continued to haunt the Blue and Gold in their opening match of the Patriot Invitational.
Despite finishing plus-14 in kills (69-55), the Bucs couldn’t overcome a plethora of mistakes as ETSU committed 38 attack and 14 service errors in the heartbreaking setback.
Neither team enjoyed much breathing room in the thriller as the teams combined for 50 ties and 19 lead changes, including three sets going over the distance.
In the first set, neither team led by more than three points, but with the score knotted at 24, the Blue and Gold broke the 17th and final tie of the frame by winning the last two points to take the opener, 26-24. ETSU held three, two-point advantages prior to pulling out the victory, while the Bucs were led by Gesell as she had seven of ETSU’s 18 kills in the stanza. While Gesell fueled the offensive surge, it was Khadijah Wiley and Briana Allmon who provided the key plays at the end. With the set all even at 24-all, Kristen Favre found Wiley for one of her 12 kills of the match, and Allmon put the finishing touches on the opener when she slammed home one of her seven kills of the night.
After taking the first set, the Tribe rallied and led wire-to-wire en route to winning the second, 25-20; however, the Bucs responded in the third and posted a 26-24 comeback victory. ETSU got off to a solid start in the frame as a kill by Rylee Milhorn put the Blue and Gold ahead, 7-4, but WM answered the challenge with a 6-2 spurt to go up, 10-9. From there, ETSU mounted a run of its own as the Bucs won seven of the next nine points to regain a 16-12 lead, while the Tribe didn’t back down as WM jumped back ahead, 22-21, following a block by Michelle Heath and Paige Humphrey. Fortunately, ETSU never buckled and dodged set point by winning the final three scores to hold a 2-1 advantage in the match. With the Tribe leading 24-23, WM committed two attack errors, while Wiley and Favre combined for a block to cap off the rally. Gesell (six), Wiley (four) and Meredith Hardy (four) all finished with multiple kills for the Bucs in the third, while ETSU’s defense limited the Tribe to a .087 (12-8-46) attack percentage.
Despite grabbing momentum and only needing to win one of the final two sets, ETSU couldn’t finish off the Tribe.
In the fourth, the teams were practically even until the late stages of the stanza as WM closed out the set on a 6-1 run to pull even at two, 25-20. Neither team led by more than two points until the final surge, while the Bucs contributed to three of the final six points for the Tribe (two attack errors and a bad set).
With the teams going to the decisive fifth set, WM controlled the early portion of the frame before ETSU rallied and looked to be in control after pulling ahead 13-11, courtesy of a kill by Gesell. However, the Tribe won five of the final six points, including the last two scores to finish the comeback, 16-14.
Favre quarterbacked ETSU’s offense as she posted 57 of the Bucs’ 63 assists, marking a career-high for the sophomore setter, while Allmon set career bests in kills (7) and digs (18) in the setback. Hardy extended her blocking streak to 97 straight games after ending with 13 kills and four blocks.
Hardy and Ivey Rice both set milestones as they played in their 100th career match against William and Mary.
Meanwhile, the Tribe were led by Mallory Brickerd’s 22 kills and Heath added a double-double. Heath finished with 11 kills and 12 digs.
William and Mary improved to 3-2 following the five-set win.
The Bucs close out play at the Patriot Invitational on Saturday as ETSU takes on Maryland at noon and Lehigh at 4 p.m.
Northern Kentucky 3, Samford 0
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Samford University volleyball team fell to 2-2 on the season after Northern Kentucky University took the match in three straight sets (25-18, 25-23, 25-23) to improve to 4-0 overall.
The beginning of the first set was a back-and-forth affair between the Bulldogs and the Norse each team traded kills and errors alike. The trouble started when NKU broke the 7-7 tie and reeled off seven straight points on McKenzie Eskridge's serve which included two service aces that brought the score to 14-7.
Senior outside hitter Michaela Reesor kept the Bulldogs in the set with seven kills but SU eventually conceded 25-19.
The Samford offense picked up steam in the second set but miscues on both the offensive and defensive sides of the net allowed Northern Kentucky to squeak out a 25-23 decision.
The Bulldogs best offensive set came in the third when team recorded 16 kills on 33 attempts but gave up another seven errors for a .273 average. The Norse whose' attack percentage was a solid .379 on the night only gave up eight attack errors.
Reesor ended the night with 17 total kills on 33 attempts. Senior Chelsi Carter paced the team with 11 digs and two service aces while sophomore setter Erika Pifer notched 44 assists on the night.
T.J. Russell and Kiahna Wicks each recorded eight kills on the night with Gabbi Greenwald seven kills added to the effort.
The Bulldogs are back in action on Saturday, September 6, for a morning and afternoon twin bill which are set for 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. against Eastern Michigan University and Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville respectively.
Winthrop 3, Furman 2
ROCK HILL, S.C. – Despite recording 17 total blocks and putting down 57 kills, Furman dropped Friday night’s match to Winthrop, 3-2 (23-25, 25-11, 24-26, 25-23, 12-15) in Winthrop Coliseum, the second game of this weekend’s Carolina Challenge.
Ashton Gregory turned in another stellar performance, pacing the Paladin offense with 15 kills (.312 hitting). She also added a career-high 12 blocks (4 solo, 8 assists) for her first double-double. Kasey Hohlen recorded the first double-digit kill game of her career (10), added four blocks and was tied for the team-high with a .500 hitting percentage. Annie Bierman recorded her second double-double of the season with 10 kills and 14 digs, and Meg DeMaar recorded a career-high 25 digs.
The teams traded points in set one, before, with the score tied at 11, Winthrop used a 5-2 run to take a 16-13 lead and force a Furman timeout. The Paladins pulled to within two at 19-17, but after two consecutive points, Furman took another timeout and regained momentum behind an Ashton Gregory kill. Three Gregory blocks and a Payton Frappier service ace gave the Paladins the lead at 23-21, but Winthrop came storming back and closed out the set on a 4-0 run to take set one, 25-23.
After Winthrop jumped out to a 3-0 lead in set one, the Paladins used an 8-2 run, fueled by the serving of Meg DeMaar and Payton Frappier to grab an 8-4 lead. Furman then used a 6-2 run to push their lead to 14-7 and force an Eagle timeout. Winthrop could not break the Paladins momentum, as Furman continued to push the lead and at 21-10 the Eagles called their second timeout of the set. Furman closed out set two on a 4-1 run to win 25-11 and tie the match at one.
It was Furman who jumped out to an 8-3 lead in set two, before Winthrop used a 7-2 run to tie the match and 10 and force a Furman timeout. The teams traded points until the Eagles took a two point lead at 21-19, causing the Paladins to take their second timeout of the set. Furman came back to tie the set at 22 and again at 23, eventually taking a 24-23 lead. The Eagles came out of a timeout and used a 3-0 run to steal set three from the Paladins, 26-24, and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
The teams traded points early in set four before, with the score tied at 10, Winthrop went on a 5-2 run, forcing Furman to call a timeout at 15-12. The teams traded points until the Eagles opened up a 22-19 lead, leading up to a Furman timeout. The Paladins came out of the timeout with a mission, using a 6-1 run to take set four, 25-23, and force a fifth set.
The Paladins used an early 4-0 run to take a 4-2 lead in set five. The teams traded points until the Paladins pushed their lead to 9-6, prompting Winthrop to call a timeout. After cutting the Furman lead to two at 10-8 prompting a Paladin timeout, the Eagles used a 4-1 run to take a 12-11 lead in the set. Following another Furman timeout, Winthrop closed out the match on a 3-1 run to take set five, 15-12, and the match, 3-2.
The Paladins are back in action tomorrow at the Carolina Challenge, taking on South Carolina at 10:00 AM and Clemson at 4:30 PM.
Presbyterian 3, Wofford 1
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Wofford and Presbyterian met on the volleyball court for the first time in 20 years on Friday and the Terriers fell in four sets (25-19, 17-25, 26-28, 21-25) on day one of the Deacon Invitational, hosted by Wake Forest.
The third set was the big momentum shifter. After splitting the first two, Wofford and Presbyterian were tied at 22 in set three. Freshman Alex Holland earned a kill and a block in succession to put the Terriers up 24-22 and Presbyterian called time facing two set points.
Out of the stoppage, the Blue Hose rattled off three straight to turn the tables and lead 25-24. Wofford senior Taylor Baird went on to save the set twice with kills to level the score at 25 and 26, but PC’s Ashton Stewart stepped up to put it away. Stewart put down back-to-back kills, winning Presbyterian the set and, ultimately, the match.
Wofford (1-3) did not look the same after winning a convincing first set. The Terriers hit .294 in the opener and never trailed after going in front 5-4 early on. In sets two, three and four combined, Wofford struggled to a .131 hitting percentage, including a flat line .000 (8-8-25) in the grueling third.
Baird led the Terriers with a match-high 17 kills and hit .208, adding five digs and four blocks. Freshman Bella Santoro also had more kills than any Presbyterian player with 14, earning her second collegiate double-double by going for 14 digs. Freshman Molly Mayo assisted 45 of Wofford’s 53 kills in the match and came up a dig shy of a double-double, also adding three aces.
For PC, Rachel Hall had a team-high 13 kills at a non-threatening .133 clip. Stewart and Kelly Berryman did most of the damage, posting 11 kills apiece and hitting .360 and .320, respectively. Setter Ashtin Frank recorded a double-double of 35 assists and 11 digs.
The Terriers looked to be in control after the opening set of their second preseason tournament. Baird and Santoro combined to hit .316 and Wofford never trailed after taking an early 5-4 lead. It was part of a 6-0 run that saw PC burn its first timeout with Wofford in front 9-4. Leading 15-11, the Terriers scored five straight to extend their first-set lead to 10. Santoro, Baird and junior Liz Buterbaugh all had kills during the run, which was capped by sophomore Ellie Tallman’s lone ace of the match.
Though it won the opener without any major problems, Wofford hiccupped for the first time at the very end of the set. The Terriers led 24-15 and let Presbyterian score four straight before finally putting the set away on one of freshman Danni Densford’s five kills.
That late-set faltering seemed to carry over into the second. After Baird went for consecutive kills to tie the set at four in the beginning stages, Presbyterian rolled off a 4-0 spurt to go on top 8-4. The Terriers never got level the rest of the way. Santoro got Wofford within a point at 9-8, but PC regained its four-point advantage right away. Holland checked into the match for the first time with Wofford down 14-9 and earned a block the first time she touched the ball, but the Terriers never really took off. PC carried its five-point lead the majority of the way and used one final 4-0 run to lead 24-15, closing out the set by eight.
The third played close and had lots of momentum swings. Holland slammed consecutive kills to give the Terriers the first significant lead of the set at 12-8. Back came Presbyterian, burning one of Coach Sweet’s timeouts through a 7-0 run and going on top 15-12. Wofford responded with the next five points. Baird and Santoro each found a kill and Wofford was back on top 17-15. The set then saw ties at 18, 20, 21 and 22. Holland helped Wofford earn two chances at the set and a crucial 2-1 lead in the match, but kills by Berryman and Hall kept the Blue Hose alive, eventually outlasting Wofford 28-26.
Losing such a vital set took a toll on the young squad. Though Wofford scored the first two points of the fourth, Presbyterian used an early 7-1 run to deflate the Terriers once more. Wofford got back within two on another of Holland’s kills at 10-8, but the biggest run of the match followed for PC, scoring 11 of the next 12 points for a commanding 21-9 stranglehold. Presbyterian was doing everything right through the run, finding holes in the Terrier defense on kills, earning aces, earning blocks and seemingly digging up every attack Wofford threw at them.
Though a comeback seemed like an impossible task, Wofford did not go down quietly. The Terriers answered PC’s run with their biggest run of the match, scoring 10 of 11 points, including six straight to come all the way back to down just three, 22-19. After another mini-spurt of Baird kills, Wofford got as close as two, trailing just 23-21. However, Presbyterian held its ground as Hall answered with a kill and Halle Tripp caught the back line on the last of her five kills to win the match.
The Wofford volleyball team will look to bounce back quickly, taking on NC Central and tournament host Wake Forest tomorrow. The NCCU match is slated for 3 p.m., followed by the tournament finale against the Demon Deacons at 7 p.m. The game against Wake can be watched online by logging onto WakeForestSports.com.
Georgia 3, Chattanooga 0
ATHENS, Ga. – The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team dropped a tight 3-0 match to Georgia to begin the Bulldog Invitation in Athens, Ga., Friday evening. UTC came within six points or less in the three sets, competing hard against a Bulldogs team that is coming off one of its best seasons in years.
The Bulldogs began the match with a 25-19 win in the first set. Chattanooga jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but UGA answered with six consecutive points to take control. The Mocs trailed for the remainder of the frame, but was able to pull within three points to bring the score to 12-9 halfway through. Junior Sarah Batterton along with sophomores Kristy Wieser and Allie Davenport attacked for three kills in a row.
The second match ended with Georgia winning 25-21, but a crowd of nearly 1,600 saw the lead change eight times and the score tied 12 times. Tied 20-all going into the final points, the Bulldogs were able to rally to down the Mocs.
Chattanooga fell 25-19 in the third stanza. Despite a few multi-point runs by the Mocs, UGA came out on top with the help of a couple of attacking errors and a service ace from Kaylee Kehoe.
Wieser ended the night with 10 kills to lead the team, while junior libero Catherine Chason totaled 16 digs. UTC matched Georgia in total blocks with six. Sophomore Nicole Sumida got a hand on five assisted blocks and junior Lauren Gainer assisted on four blocks.
The Mocs return to action Saturday at 10 p.m. against College of Charleston. They wrap up the tournament later at 4 p.m. against in-state rival Belmont.