BOONE, NC– Appalachian State extended its unbeaten streak to 11 games with a 3-1 win over UNC Greensboro Saturday afternoon at the Holmes Center. The Mountaineers topped UNCG by scores of 33-35, 30-18, 30-28 and 30-24.
UNCG (15-14, 8-7 SoCon) was led by Katherine Hart, Kaitlyn Nortz and Branagan Fuller who each tallied 13 kills in the loss. The Spartans had five players with double-digit digs led by Lauren Keiser who recorded 16 digs on the afternoon. Nortz also tallied eight blocks for the Spartans.
Appalachian State's Brittany Zahn had a match-high 18 kills and eight digs to lead the Mountaineers. Teammate Heather Kale tallied a team-high 21 digs while Lorelle Rau dished out a match-high 46 assists.
In game one Appalachian State rolled out to an 11-5 lead early before the Spartans came back to cut the lead to 23-20 midway through the match. UNCG was able to get the score down to 23-22 as a result of several Appalachian State errors. Minutes later the Spartans took their first lead of the game on another Appalachian State miscue and the score would go back-and-forth from that point.
The game would go into extra time and with the score tied at 33-33 UNCG used kills from Nortz and Keiser coupled with an Appalachian State attack error to take game one, 35-33.
Appalachian State would respond in the second game and used their offense to record a .434 hitting percentage while holding UNCG to a .162 hitting percentage. The Mountaineers pulled out to a 19-10 lead and never looked back as they evened the match with a 30-18 victory. The third game was much closer from the outset and featured four early ties. UNCG was able to take a 14-10 lead before the Mountaineers tallied four straight points to tie the game at 14-14. With Appalachian State holding a 27-25 lead, kills from Brittany Zahn, Dianna Thomas and Lauren Swecker gave the Mountaineers a 30-28 win and a 2-1 match lead.
The fourth game was a battle from the outset and featured seven ties but UNCG couldn't overcome Appalachian State down the stretch. With the Mountaineers leading 25-22, several Spartan miscues pushed the Appalachian State lead to 29-23 and although the Spartans scored the next three points, the Mountaineers sealed the match with a kill from Swecker.
UNCG concludes the weekend Sunday when they head to Davidson, NC to take on Davidson. First serve is set for 2 pm in Belk Arena.
AGATE
Appalachian State def. UNCG 33-35, 30-18, 30-28, 30-24
UNCG (15-14, 8-7 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Katherine Hart 13-0-2;Kaitlyn Nortz 13-1-8; Branagan Fuller 13-1-1; Emily Lindborg 7-0-1;Lauren Keiser 7-0-0; Lisa Fawell 3-0-2; Kimiko Naito 0-1-0; Alissa Beaudway 0-0-3; Totals 56-3-9.0. (Assists) - Lisa Fawell 40. (Dig leaders) - Lauren Keiser 16; Catherine Hanners 15; Kimiko Naito 12;Lisa Fawell 11; Branagan Fuller 10
Appalachian State (17-12, 13-3 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Brittany Zahn 18-3-1; Dianna Thomas 15-4-3; Carla Durham 12-0-5; Lorelle Rau10-0-2; Lauren Swecker 9-0-1; Becca Norris 3-0-2; Charissa Clearman 0-1-0; Cassie Engelgau 0-1-0; Heather Kale 0-2-0; Totals 67-11-9.0. (Assists) - Lorelle Rau 46. (Dig leaders) - Heather Kale 21; Lorelle Rau 10; Brittany Zahn 8; Dianna Thomas 8; Cassie Engelgau 8
- UNCG -
