GREENSBORO, NC Hilary Overby put away a match-high 13 kills to give UNC Greensboro its first women's volleyball Southern Conference victory since 2003. The Spartans swept past The Citadel 3-0 Tuesday night at Fleming Gym in their 2005 conference opener.
Overby, a junior from Spring, TX, added 10 digs to go along with her 13 kills for a “double-double” effort this evening. Sophomore Lauren Keiser had 11 kills for UNCG, while sophomore Ashley Smith came up with a career-high 20 digs. Sophomore Alysia Rosvold had 13 digs and senior Adrian Hicks doled out 38 assists.
“The win was certainly a timely one for us,” said first-year head coach Shawn Garus. “Our team starts out the conference season with a victory and hopefully this is something we can build off. We played to win tonight and that is something we practice every day.”
UNCG (2-9, 1-0 SoCon) won the match by scores of 37-35, 30-30 and 30-28. The Bulldogs fall to 1-11 on the season and 0-3 in the SoCon.
In the opening game with the score tied 35-35, Rosvold notched a service ace to put UNCG in the driver seat for a game one win. After another Rosvold jump serve, Alexandra Morrell's attack was unsuccessful, giving the Spartans a thrilling 37-35 win. UNCG rattled off seven straight points to take an early 7-2 lead, but the Bulldogs stormed back to knot the affair, 13-13, on a block by Amy Brooks and Marina Daniel.
The Citadel continued its torrid play and would lead by as much as seven points, 24-17, but UNCG rallied with a 13-5 run to take a 30-29 lead on a Keiser service error. Keiser served again for the game, but an Amy Brooks' kill tied the game 30-30.
Game two was tied 10-10, before UNCG took a 21-14 lead on a Keiser put away. Keiser provided much of the offense in the second game for the Spartans, including another kill that gave the home team a 25-15 advantage. Freshman Kaitlyn Nortz put the finishing touches on the game with a kill.
The Citadel broke open a tightly played third game to take a 24-17 lead on a UNCG ball handling error. With the Bulldogs still holding on to a 26-21 lead, the Spartans ran off six straight points to grab a 27-26 lead. Overby jump started the run with a kill off a feed from Hicks, while Nortz capped the spurt with another service ace.
Stefanie Farris tied the game, 27-27, with a kill for the Bulldogs, but Overby proved to be too much by putting away two more kills, including the final point that gave UNCG its first SoCon win since a 3-0 win over The Citadel on October 17, 2003.
Daniel led The Citadel with 12 kills, while Rachel Sanders had 10 kills of her own. Emily Hill led four players in double-figures in digs with 15. Hill also dished out 34 assists.
UNCG will host league foe Elon this Friday night at Fleming Gym at 7 pm. It's Fall Fest and Alumni Reunion weekend at UNCG. The women's volleyball team will also take on SoCon rival Georgia Southern on Saturday afternoon at 2 pm.
AGATE
UNC Greensboro def. The Citadel 3-0 (37-35, 30-20, 30-28)
- UNCG -
