CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Luciana Shafer delivered a match-high 18 kills and Caley Redden had her 15th double-double on the year as UNC Greensboro rolled over Western Carolina, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon in the Ramsey Center.
The Spartans finished the year 17-14 overall and 9-7 in the Southern Conference. Western Carolina is now 3-26 on the year and 0-15 in the league with one match remaining.
"First off, Western Carolina played real tough and fought until the very end," said head coach Patrick Nicholas. "It was a good match for us to win and I was happy we were able to send our seniors off with a win. It's sad to say goodbye to them, but as I told the team, these seniors have laid down a pretty good foundation for this program's success. Overall this season, I was real proud of our team and the way they played with a lot of heart and toughness. It's a shame that only four teams make the conference tournament this season because there is so much parity in the league this season."
Shafer hit .310 for the match as she recorded 18 kills and Redden had 11 kills and a team-high 28 digs to record her double-double. Ari Lysacek also had a double-double as she finished with 34 assists and 10 digs. Catherine Hanners had 24 digs in the match to finish her career with a school-record 2,315 digs.
The Spartans got the match started off on a good note as they used an 8-0 run early in the first set to take a 12-3 lead. UNCG continued to cruise through the set as a Shafer kill and a block by Lysacek gave the Spartans the first set, 25-14.
The second set didn't go as well for the Spartans as the Catamounts rattled off five straight points to take a 9-4 lead. The Spartans managed to pull within 20-18 late in the set on a kill by Alissa Beaudway, but Western Carolina won five of the last six points to take the set, 25-19.
UNCG rebounded coming out of the break to take the third set. UNCG fell behind 7-3 to begin the set, but rallied to take an 11-9 lead on a kill by Emily Lindborg. The two teams traded points to most of the set although the Spartans trailed 20-18 late in the set. The Spartans won the next two points on kills by Shafer and Redden to tie the set at 20. After the Catamounts took a 22-21 lead, UNCG scored the final four points of the set to win it, 25-22.
Holding on to a 2-1 team lead, UNCG once again had a sluggish start to begin a set. The Catamounts had an early 5-0 run to take a 9-3 lead on a kill by Amanda Kerr. Trailing 15-9, the Spartans went on a 10-4 run, capped off by a Kayren Finney kill, to tie the score at 19. The two teams found themselves tied at 23, but Lindborg delivered back-to-back kills to give UNCG the final set, 25-23.
AGATE
UNC Greensboro def. Western Carolina: 25-14, 19-25, 25-22, 25-23
UNC Greensboro (17-14, 9-7 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Luciana Shafer 18-0-2; Caley Redden 11-0-3; Emily Lindborg 10-0-3; Billi Baker 7-0-4; Kayren Finney 5-0-0; Olivia Humphries 3-0-1; Alissa Beaudway 2-0-1; Ari Lysacek 1-0-1; Kimiko Naito 1-0-0; Catherine Hanners 0-4-0; Totals 58-4-12.0. (Assists) - Ari Lysacek 34. (Dig leaders) - Caley Redden 28; Catherine Hanners 24; Kayleigh Knerr 17; Ari Lysacek 10; Kimiko Naito 8
WCU (3-26, 0-15 SoCon) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Amanda Chaparro 13-0-0; Rebecca Stoltz 11-1-3; Abbey Scroggins 6-0-3; Katie Hennessey 4-1-2; Amanda Kerr 4-0-0; Carrie Minogue 3-0-2; Kara Lynzee Brooks 2-0-2; Paloma Alvarez 1-0-0; Totals 44-2-7.0. (Assists) - Katie Hennessey 35. (Dig leaders) - Liz Rondone 32; Amanda Chaparro 14; Katie Hennessey 14; Kara Lynzee Brooks 11
Site: Cullowhee, N.C. (Ramsey Center)
Date: Nov 14, 2009 Attend: 101 Time: 2 hr
- UNCG -
