GREENSBORO, NC – Theresa Hart led three UNC Greensboro women's volleyball players in double digit kills with a match-high 20 in a 3-0 victory over Wofford in the Southern Conference home opener for the Spartans on Tuesday night at Fleming Gym.
The victory for UNCG (10-5, 1-2 SoCon) was its first over Wofford since the 2003 season and gave the Spartans 10 wins in a season for the first time since 1999.
Hart, the senior transfer from the University of San Francisco, had 20 kills on 40 attempts for a .250 hitting percentage. Sophomore Kaitlyn Nortz notched her ninth straight double digit total with 15 kills, while freshman Branagan Fuller was efficient with 10 kills on a .400 hitting percentage.
Freshman setter Lisa Fawell dished out 49 assists, while classmate Kayleigh Knerr came up with 13 digs for the second straight match.
Sarah Twitty and Courtney Gregory led Wofford (4-6, 0-2 SoCon) with eight kills apiece, while Twitty also had a team-high 13 digs. Joanna Suddath doled out 29 assists for the Terriers.
UNCG avoided its third straight loss to open the conference season by showing some resiliency in the opening game. After falling behind by as much as nine points, 24-15, the Spartans ran off a 12-3 run to tie the game for the first time at 27-27.
Knerr's deftly placed serves helped UNCG take its first lead at 28-27. In fact, the Moon Township, PA native served seven straight points for the Spartans which included one service ace and a pair of kills by Nortz.
The match was tied for the final time at 29-29, before Hart put away her eighth kill of game one and a Terrier attack error gave UNCG an improbable come back win, 31-29.
The Spartans rolled their momentum into game two by cruising to a comfortable 30-19 victory. Hart added eight more kills in the second game. Leading by a narrow margin 9-7, UNCG took off on a 15-7 run that put them up 24-14 and at that point were well on its way to victory.
After the intermission, Wofford fell behind 8-1 in the opening minutes and was unable to recover the rest of the way as UNCG closed out the match with a 30-21 win. Nortz and Fuller each contributed five kills in the final game for the Spartans.
UNCG heads back on the road to take on SoCon rival Chattanooga on Saturday at 2 pm and then Western Carolina on Sunday at 4 pm.
AGATE
UNC Greensboro def. Wofford 31-29, 30-19, 30-21
Wofford (4-6, 0-2 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Sarah Twitty 8-1-1; Courtney Gregory 8-1-0; Liz Sheets 6-0-0; Lindsey Richardson 6-0-0; Shanna Hughes 3-0-2; Sarah Palmer 2-0-0; Joanna Suddath 2-0-2; Lisa Lindemenn 0-1-0; Shana Glenn 0-2-0; Carolyn Rivers 0-1-0; Totals 35-6-3.0. (Assists) - Joanna Suddath 29. (Dig leaders) - Sarah Twitty 13; Joanna Suddath 8.
UNC Greensboro (10-5, 1-2 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Theresa Hart 20-0-1; Kaitlyn Nortz 15-1-5; Branagan Fuller 10-0-0; Lauren Keiser 9-1-2; Hilary Overby 1-0-0; Lisa Fawell 1-2-2; Catherine Hanners 1-1-0; Liz Benzschawel 0-0-1; Kayleigh Knerr 0-1-0; Totals 57-6-7.0. (Assists) - Lisa Fawell 49. (Dig leaders) - Kayleigh Knerr 13; Catherine Hanners 11; Theresa Hart 10.
- UNCG -
