GREENSBORO, NC With lone senior Kaitlyn Nortz playing in her final regular season game, UNC Greensboro stunned conference leader Samford, 25-19, 25-18, 25-23, on Saturday afternoon in Fleming Gymnasium.
With the win, the Spartans (22-9, 14-4 SoCon) clinched second place in the North Division. Having already clinched first place in the North Division, the Bulldogs (27-4, 16-2 SoCon) lost for just the second time in the past 23 matches.
The Spartans hit .214 and accumulated 49 blocks for the match. The Bulldogs hit just .140 for the afternoon and only had 10 blocks.
UNCG Greensboro got started the match with a quick 3-0 run before the two teams traded points in the opening stanza. The Spartans extended their lead to 15-11, before the Bulldogs made it 20-18 late in the set. UNCG head coach Shawn Garus called a timeout to gather his players and they responded by going on a 5-1 run to win the first set 25-19.
The Spartans carried the momentum into the second set as they jumped out to a quick 8-2 lead. UNCG continued to tally points as they hit .292 for the set and registered 17 blocks in the set. The Spartans closed out the set by running off four of the final five points in the set to win the set 25-18 and take a 2-0 set lead.
After the 10 minute break, Samford came out of the locker room with a newfound confidence. The Bulldogs had a 6-3 lead early in the third set and led 19-15 as it looked as if the Bulldogs would win set until the Spartans rallied. UNCG rallied to pull within 19-18 and traded a few points before winning the final four points of the set to win the set 25-23 and the match 3-0.
UNCG will have five days off before returning to the friendly confines of Fleming Gymnasium for the 2008 Southern Conference Volleyball Championship. The Spartans will face the No. 3 seed from the South Division, Georgia Southern, at 7 p.m. in the first round.
AGATE
UNCG def. Samford 25-19, 25-18, 25-23
UNCG (22-9, 14-4 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Kayren Finney 7-0-5; Branagan Fuller 6-0-1; Kaitlyn Nortz 5-1-9; Alissa Beaudway 4-0-5; Caley Redden 2-0-1; Billi Baker 2-0-8; Lisa Fawell 1-1-0; Totals 27-5-29. (Assists) - Kimiko Naito 12; Lisa Fawell 11. (Dig leaders) - Catherine Hanners 11; Lisa Fawell 5.
Samford (27-4, 16-2 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) Sara Sears 10-1-0; Kirstein Sosnowski 9-0-0; Samantha Bland 8-1-2; Sheriden Stangohr 6-0-2; Rachel Gadberry 5-0-0; Sarah Gardner 2-1-0; Totals 40-4-4. (Assists) Hillary Fountain 35. (Dig leaders) Courtney Gay 11; Samantha Bland 5; Sara Sears 4.
- UNCG -
