Friday, October 24, 2014
Defense Leads Panthers to Win in Pink Match
ATLANTA – Georgia State pulled out a 3-1 win at home against UL Lafayette on Friday at the GSU Sports Arena, winning 25-22, 21-25, 25-21, and 27-25. The Panthers outhit ULL .280-.255 and had five players finish with nine or more kills.
“Our defense helped our attackers get comfortable and gave them more opportunities to score and put together longer rallies,” junior Kitan Ajanaku said. “Eliza [Zachary] was consistent throughout the match and that really helped set up our other attackers and spread out the offense.”
Zachary and junior Deidra Bohannon led GSU on offense, but had help from several other players, including sophomore Kristina Stinson, senior Andrea Book and Ajanaku. Junior Natalia Nieto had another spectacular performance at setter, dishing out 50 assists in four sets.
Sally Polhamus praised her teams passing and serving after the match. “Our passing allowed us to set multiple people and they stepped up. Kristina [Stinson], Andrea [Book] both had great games,” Polhamus said. “In tough situations, they found ways to score.”
NOTING THE PANTHERS...
·Junior Gabby Serafin finished the contest with 21 digs and the Panthers recorded 9 total team blocks.
·Junior Natalia Nieto’s 50 assists moved her into sixth place on GSU’s all-time assists list. Nieto now has 2,237 assists for her career.
·Georgia State improves to 6-14 (4-7 SBC) while UL Lafayette drops to 15-9 (5-8).
·This is the second time the two teams have met this season. In both contests, the home team came away victorious as the Ragin’ Cajuns won 3-2 at Lafayette earlier this season.
·Junior Deidra Bohannon, GSU’s points leader, came alive in Set 4 on Friday night. Bohannon posted eight kills on .333 hitting in the final frame to seal the deal and send ULL home with a loss.
Georgia State raced out to a 6-2 lead in the first set, but the Ragin’ Cajuns rallied to take an 8-6 lead. After trailing by four, Georgia State made a comeback of their own to reclaim a two-point lead at 17-15, leading to a ULL timeout. Zachary fueled the final effort, finishing with six kills to lead the Panthers to a 25-22 win.
Riding the momentum, GSU led 5-2 to start Set 2, but the lead wouldn’t last as the Ragin’ Cajuns once again surged to retake the lead. The two sides traded points until ULL pulled away to take the set 25-21.
ULL led for most of Set 3. The Panthers tied that match at 13 and proceeded to take a 15-14 lead to force a ULL timeout. Georgia State kept its foot on the pedal after the break and went on to claim the set 25-21. Ajanaku and Book stepped up on defense for the Panthers in Set 3 as the duo combined for five of GSU’s six block assists.
With a 2-1 lead going into the fourth set, Georgia State kept the pressure on the Ragin’ Cajuns. ULL fought hard and never trailed by more than three points, but GSU was able to match ULL point for point and closed the door on any hopes for a ULL comeback.
Georgia State is back in action on Saturday when they take on Troy at 8 p.m. ET. Follow along on Twitter via @GeorgiaStateVB.
Georgia State Takes Down Cajuns In Four
ATLANTA, Ga. – Chanelle Gardner tied a career highs with 17 kills, but Georgia State was too tough at home and handed the Ragin’ Cajuns their fourth consecutive loss, 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 25-21, 27-25) on Friday at the GSU Sports Arena on Friday.
The Panthers (6-14, 4-7 SBC) evened the season series with the Cajuns (15-9, 5-8 SBC) after UL had taken a 3-2 win in Lafayette earlier in the month.
Gardner dropped in her 17 kills on 39 swings, hitting .483 for the match with five blocks, surpassing her previous career-best hitting percentage of .438. She was the only Cajun to reach double figures, with Sara Mossakowski next with eight scores.
Andrea Hole had 44 assists and four kills, directing the Cajuns to .255 hitting on the night. Kaylee Nemeth had seven kills and Abby Filce had six kills and three rejections.
Caitlyn Auxilien had 16 digs for the Cajuns and Stacey Reilly joined her in double figures with 10.
Dedira Bohanon led GSU with 17 kills and Eliza Zachary added 15, while the Panthers hit .280 for the match.
The Cajuns hit over .250 in three of the four sets, including a .333 attack percentage in the final set; however, the Panthers hit at least .280 in three of their four sets, including twice over .300, including 17 kills in the first set and 21 in the fourth and final set.
UL will return home on Monday to step out of conference in its first-ever meeting with Abilene Christian. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m. from Earl K. Long Gym.
Mavs pick up 10th straight home victory
ARLINGTON, Texas - UT Arlington picked up its tenth straight home win on Friday night at College Park Center as the Mavericks took down Georgia Southern in four sets (25-22, 25-23, 19-25, 25-18) in front of a crowd of 755.
The Mavs improve to 19-5 this season and 9-3 in conference play while the Eagles fall to 6-16 overall and 5-7 in the Sun Belt.
Qiana Canete recorded her 16th double-double of the season as she registered 17 kills and 11 digs to go with four blocks in the four-set win. Stacey Koch also chipped in as she notched eight kills while hitting .200. Briana Sharratt made her impact known as the sophomore MB recorded eight blocks and six kills in the match. Caitlyn Cooney led the defensive efforts as the junior libero recorded 17 digs on the night.
As a team the Mavericks outhit the Eagles .142 to 0.085 while also out blocking Georgia Southern 15.5-13. Georgia Southern out dug UTA 67-63 in the match.
The Mavericks will now take to the road as they travel to Monroe, La. this Sunday to face ULM with the match slated to begin at noon.
UT Arlington Halts Volleyball’s Win Streak, Tops Eagles 3-1
ARLINGTON, Texas – Qiana Canete collected a match-high 17 kills to go along with 11 digs and four blocks to lead UT Arlington to a 3-1 (25-22, 25-23, 19-25, 25-18) Sun Belt Conference volleyball victory over Georgia Southern Friday night at the College Park Center.
Kym Coley tallied 16 kills and eight blocks to lead the Eagles (6-16, 5-7), while Cathrine Murray posted 14 kills, eight digs and two blocks. Jamie DeRatt finished with 11 kills, 15 digs and two blocks, and Avery Stephens had a match-high 21 digs. Kat Minnerly recorded 44 assists, 11 digs and three blocks.
Stacey Koch had eight kills and three blocks for UT Arlington (19-5, 9-3), and Briana Sharratt finished with six kills and eight blocks. Caitlyn Cooney added 17 digs and six assists.
Georgia Southern’s defense was solid as the Eagles tallied 13 blocks and 67 digs as a team, holding the Mavericks to .142 hitting for the match. But UTA was a touch better, posting 15.5 blocks and holding the Eagles to an .085 hitting percentage.
“We played well in stretches tonight, but we had too many mental lapses,” said Georgia Southern coach Dustin Wood. “Our defense did a great job tonight to give us opportunities, but we were not mentally strong consistently. We need to refocus for a very important match tomorrow and learn from our mistakes.”
Leading the match 2-1, the Mavericks scored six straight points to break a 17-17 tie in the fourth set with the help of Cassidy Wheeler’s serve. Canete ignited the run with a kill and added another during the stretch. Coley stopped the run with a kill for Georgia Southern, but the Mavericks took the next two points to win the set and the match.
The first set was tightly-contested all the way through with neither team gaining more than a three-point lead. With the score tied 22-22, the Mavericks notched three points in a row, keyed by kills from Canete and Sharratt.
Trailing 24-19 in the second set, Georgia Southern fought for four straight points on the strength of Murray’s serve. DeRatt got the sideout with a kill, and Coley followed with a kill. After two Maverick hitting errors, Canete put down a kill to give UTA a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Eagles never trailed in the third set and opened a 20-10 cushion, keyed by a pair of blocks by Coley and Minnerly. UTA fought back to trim the margin to 23-18, but Minnerly and Murray posted kills to finish the set off for the Eagles.
Georgia Southern plays at Texas State Saturday night. First serve is slated for 8 p.m. (Eastern).
Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics, twitter.com/GSAthletics, iOS app Georgia Southern Eagles and Android app Eagles GATA. Fans can purchase tickets to Georgia Southern Athletics events by calling 1-800-GSU-WINS or by visiting GSEagles.com.
Daniel's Eight Double-Double Leads Jags to 3-2 SBC Road Win at ULM
MONROE, La. – Mechell Daniel posted her team-leading eighth double-double of the season Friday night as the University of South Alabama volleyball team snapped a three-match Sun Belt Conference skid with a 3-2 (25-20, 20-25, 25-17, 19-25, 15-13) over Louisiana-Monroe at the Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
The Jaguars (10-11, 5-6 SBC) will now take on Arkansas State on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center. Live stats and web streaming for the match versus Arkansas State will be available at www.USAJaguars.com and can be accessed on the Jaguar volleyball schedule page.
Along with Daniel, South Alabama placed three other players in double figures – Mallory Moore (16 kills), Jessica Lewis (15 kills) and Nikki Gittens (11 kills). Jaguar junior setter Emily Hundt posted her seventh double-double of the season with 60 assists and 10 digs of her own.
Senior libero Jenna Hassell also carded a new season-best with 26 digs as did Kelly Little with 14 off the USA bench. South Alabama held an 87-71 advantage in the dig category, and a 67-38 margin in assists. USA also had 73 kills compared to ULM's 44.
Louisiana-Monroe dropped to 7-17 on the season and 1-11 in the Sun Belt. Hope Pawlik was the lone Warhawk to end the night in double digits offensively, ending the evening with 12 kills. Pawlik also added 19 digs and two block assists. Hadley Swartz just missed double figures with nine kills. Marcela Araya paced ULM with 24 digs.
SET ONE: SOUTH ALABAMA 25, LOUISIANA-MONROE 20
South Alabama opened up the match by capturing five of the first six points and later took and 8-3 lead following a Warhawk attack error. ULM answered right back with four unanswered points of its own to cut the USA advantage to one (8-7). The Jaguars though quickly regained control of the set and rattled off six of the next seven points and took a 14-8 advantage following Daniel's third kill of the frame.
The Jaguars later extended their lead out to 17-10 after a kill and a block by Gittens
Louisiana-Monroe made a late charge and narrowed the Jaguar lead to 23-20 after a pair of South Alabama attack errors, but the Jaguars were able to pick up the final two points of the set, the first coming on a kill by Daniel.
Moore and Daniel led USA offensively in the opening set with five kills apiece. Daniel had her five kills on seven attacks and didn't commit an attack error to finish the frame with a .714 hitting percentage. Moore hit .375 in the set.
SET TWO: LOUISIANA-MONROE 25, SOUTH ALABAMA 20
The Jags led by as much as four midway through the second set, but with USA holding a 12-8 advantage after a kill by Symone Stephenson, ULM began to battle back and tied the set up at 15-15 on a kill by Jennifer Hoffman. The Warhawks took the lead on the ensuing point when Bayleigh Hoffman dropped in an ace.
USA regained the lead at 19-18 on a Gitten's putaway, but Louisiana-Monroe closed out the frame by picking up seven of the final eight points to even the match at one set apiece. Pawlik ignited the set-winning rally with back-to-back kills and Hoffman capped it off and sealed the 25-20 win with a kill of her own.
South Alabama committed 13 attack errors in the frame and ULM posted nine total blocks – three solo and six assists. The attack errors by the Jaguars were the difference in the set as the Warhawks committed just three attack errors and had only seven kills.
SET THREE: SOUTH ALABAMA 25, LOUISIANA-MONROE 17
South Alabama quickly regained the momentum in the match as it opened up the third set on a 6-0 run. From there, ULM never threatened as USA later pushed its lead out to 20-10 after a kill by Lewis, one of her five in the frame. Daniel later sealed the 25-17 victory for the Jags with a kill of her own.
Moore led USA offensively in the third set with six kills.
SET FOUR: LOUISIANA-MONROE 25, SOUTH ALABAMA 19
ULM evened up the match in the fourth set as the Warhawks captured a 25-19 win in the set.
Tied 7-7 early in the frame, Louisiana-Monroe extended its lead out to five with a 6-1 run. Alannah Cullum and Kalena Caruthers gave ULM the 13-8 advantage as the duo teamed up to block a Jaguar attack. USA had three attack errors and a serving error during the run.
From there, South Alabama got no closer than five the rest of the set as the Warhawks evened the match at 2-2 on an ace by Cullum.
Lewis paced USA with seven kills in the fourth frame. ULM's frontline again came up big, registering seven more total blocks.
SET FIVE: SOUTH ALABAMA 15, LOUISIANA-MONROE 13
Riding the momentum of evening the match in the previous set, Louisiana-Monroe took the lead early in the fifth set. ULM led 7-4 after a kill by Hadley Swartz, but answered back with four of the next five points to tie the set up at 8-all.
With the set tied 12-12, Gittens recorded her gave the Jags the lead for good with her 11th kill of the night. Daniel later clinched the five-set win for South Alabama as the sophomore from Chelmsford, England, slammed home her 20th kill of the evening.
NOTES: South Alabama improved to 9-6 in the all-time series with the win over Louisiana-Monroe. USA has now won eight of the last nine meetings in the series and is 3-3 all-time in matches played in Monroe. The 60 assists and 10 digs by Emily Hundt versus the Warhawks marked her seventh double-double of the season. Mechell Daniel now has eight double-doubles after posting 20 kills and a season-high 19 digs. The 26 digs by Jenna Hassell were a new season-best for the senior. Sophomore outside hitter Mallory Moore tied a career-high with her 16 kills. Kelly Little also had a season-high 14 digs of the Jaguar bench.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Jaguars Squeak by Warhawks, 3-2
MONROE, La. – The ULM volleyball team fell two points shy of victory in arguably the tightest match of the season as South Alabama edged the Warhawks, 3-2 (25-20, 20-25, 25-17, 19-25, 15-13) Friday night at the Fant Ewing Coliseum on Dig Pink night.
Hope Pawlik excelled on both sides of the ball en route to her fourth double-double of the season. The sophomore from Katy, Texas led the team with 12 kills to go with a season-high 19 digs.
ULM (7-18, 1-11 Sun Belt) answered the call after the Jaguars (10-11, 5-6 Sun Belt) took a one set victory. The Warhawks came out of the gate on fire before Bayleigh Hoffman put the set away, 25-20.
South Alabama grabbed set three to take a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth stanza. However, ULM responded yet again with a dominating 25-19 fourth set triumph.
Tied 13-13 in the decisive fifth set, the Jaguars took advantage of two late kills to put the match to rest.
After registering 60 digs a week ago, Marcela Araya picked up right where she left off with 24 digs from the libero position. The senior from Costa Rica has eclipsed 20 digs 13 times on the year.
Kaitlyn Shearer continues to be a force in the middle, totaling seven kills and a match-high six blocks. Alannah Cullum collected six kills on an efficient .545 hitting percentage, while Hoffman assisted on 35 of the team’s 44 kills on the match.
Hadley Swartz just missed a double-double as the sophomore posted 13 digs and nine kills in the effort. Jennifer McClendon and Kimberlie Alvarado each added three kills.
The Warhawks return to the courts Sunday at home against UT Arlington. First serve is set for noon.
A-State Volleyball Wins Five-Set Thriller Over Appalachian State
JONESBORO, Ark. (10/24/14) – The Arkansas State volleyball squad snapped a three-match losing skid with a thrilling 3-2 (25-20, 25-23, 22-25, 25-27, 15-12) victory over Appalachian State Friday night at the Convocation Center in Jonesboro.
With the match tied 2-2, the Mountaineers (17-5, 7-5) jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead on the Red Wolves (12-8, 7-4), but A-State struck back with a 4-1 run to take a 4-3 lead after a Drew Jones kill. A-State had a two-point cushion at 10-8 after a Jessica Uke kill, but three straight points by Appalachian State put the Red Wolves down 11-10. A-State answered with a 3-0 run of its own to take a 13-11 lead and held a 14-11 advantage after a Kelsey Reis block. The Mountaineers won the next point, but another Jones kill gave A-State a 15-12 set victory and 3-2 match win.
“This was a really hard match against a really good team,” A-State volleyball coach David Rehr said. “Let’s give Appalachian State a lot of credit because they are a really good volleyball team. It really helped that we were at home and in front of our home crowd. We didn’t play the cleanest match, but we walked away with a win and ended our three-game losing streak, which was huge.”
The Red Wolves had three players register double-digit kills with Sarah Kemp’s 21 leading the way. Jones was second on the team with 20 kills and Uke tallied 19 on a team-high .548 hitting percentage. Mallory Warrington recorded her 15th double-double by tying a season high with 59 assists and adding 10 digs. Markie Schaedig had a career night defensively for the Red Wolves by registering 41 digs to break her career high of 40, set just last Friday at UT Arlington. Reis led A-State’s blocking efforts with two block solos and three block assists for a total of five.
“It was definitely a huge win for us,” Schaedig said. “I’m the leader of the defense so my main job was to dig the outside hitter’s balls. I thought our entire defense worked really well together and we got a lot of balls up for the offense to run.”
Arkansas State began the match on a 5-0 run, capped by a Kemp kill, in the first set to force an early Appalachian State timeout. A-State extended its lead to 11-5 after another Kemp kill, but the Mountaineers eventually came back to tie the set at 16-16. Appalachian State took a 20-19 edge, but A-State regained the lead at 21-20 on a Warrington service ace and ended the set on a 5-0 run, capped by a Kariana Castanon-Hill kill, to earn a 25-20 set victory.
The second set of the match was a struggle early as both teams battled to a 9-9 tie, but Appalachian State took a two-point advantage at 17-15. A-State fought back with a 5-0 run to earn a 20-17 lead after a Kemp kill, but Appalachian State got within one point on three different occasions with the last coming at 24-23. The Red Wolves capitalized on a set point with a Jones kill and earned a 25-23 set victory for a 2-0 lead in the match.
Appalachian State began its comeback by racing out to a 20-12 lead in the third set. A-State fought back to get within two points at 24-22 on a Reis and Warrington block, but a kill by Jess Keller gave the Mountaineers a 25-22 third set win. The fourth set was hotly contested with both teams tied 15-15 midway through the game. A-State earned a 20-17 edge on a Reis kill, but Appalachian State fought back to tie the set at 25-25. The Mountaineers earned the next two points to take a 27-25 set victory and tie the match at 2-2 to set up the fifth and final set.
The Red Wolves return to action Saturday, Oct. 25 when they host South Alabama. First serve from the Convocation Center is set for 7 p.m., and fans can keep up with the entire match’s action by viewing live stats at AStateStats.com and by following @AStateGameday on Twitter. For the latest on the A-State volleyball team follow the squad on Twitter (@stAteVolleyball).
Mountaineers Fall in Five Set Battle
JONESBORO, Ark. - Appalachian State University volleyball fell in a five-set heartbreaker on Friday night to Arkansas State, featuring sets with scores of 20-25, 23-25, 25-22, 27-25 and 12-15.
The Mountaineers (17-5, 7-5 Sun Belt) came back from a two-set deficit, but it would not be enough as Arkansas State (12-8, 7-4 SBC) closed out the match.
The Red Wolves got the edge to begin the first set, jumping out to a 5-0 lead over the Apps by finding four kills. A kill from Emily Corrigan would break ASU's run, but the Mountaineers would still continue to trail by at least four points until kills from Corrigan and Jacqui Spurgeon would put them within one and make the score 13-12.
Another point from Spurgeon would tie the set at 16 and a kill from Jess Keller would put the Apps over top the Red Wolves, 18-17.
The lead would not last long as Arkansas State found a service ace to make the score 21-20 and the Red Wolves found the last four points to take the first set, 25-20.
Appalachian's Cassidy Stephenson would begin the second set with a kill and the Mountaineers would maintain a lead until the Red Wolves would tie the score at seven.
The Apps would find their second lead until Arkansas State found a kill to pull ahead 18-17. From there Arkansas State would seem in control of the set, scoring four of the next five points.
Keller found two kills to break the ASU run and help App State trail by only two with a score of 22-20, but Arkansas State would close it out again, taking the second set, 25-23.
The beginning of the third set featured four tied scores until Appalachian scored four-straight points off Arkansas State errors to take the lead, 9-5.
The Apps would find several kills to help them lead by as much as eight points, but the Red Wolves began to close the lead, going on a 5-1 run to trail by only four points with a score of 22-18. Keller would come through for Appalachian by finding three kills, leading the Mountaineers to a 25-22 win in the third set.
The Mountaineers jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the fourth set, but both teams would struggle to maintain a lead as the score was tied four different times.
With the score tied at 10, Arkansas State pulled ahead, scoring four of the next six points to take a 15-12 lead. The Apps would find points, including a kill from Corrigan to quickly tie the set again, making the score 15-15, but Appalachian would then commit two errors, letting Arkansas State take another lead.
Kills from Lauren Gray, Keller and Corrigan would propel Appalachian forward to a 20-20 tie with the Red Wolves, but ASU would then respond with two points of their own to lead 22-20. Appalachian would not go away, finding two kills to tie the score at 22, and then pulling ahead, 24-22.
Appalachian would not take the fourth yet, as the Red Wolves quickly tied the score at 25. From there the Apps would find kills from Keller and Gray to take the fourth set, 27-25 and tie the match 2-2.
The fourth set began with four tied scores until the Red Wolves would find a kill to help them to a 9-7 lead. The lead would not last long as the Mountaineers battled back, tying the score at 11. From there Arkansas State would go on a 5-1 run, scoring the match point to take the fourth 15-12 and win the match 3-2.
Corrigan recorded a match-high 26 kills in the loss, while Keller followed with a career-high of 24 kills.
Paige Brown had another successful match for the Apps, ending the night with 60 assists. Meghan Mahoney led with 21 digs in the match.
Sarah Kemp and Drew Jones led the way for the Red Wolves, finding 21 and 20 kills, respectively.
The Mountaineers hit .230 in the loss, while Arkansas State recorded a .258 hitting percentage.
Appalachian will travel to UALR tomorrow to take on the Trojans at 8 p.m.