Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
Youngstown State 3, UNCG 1 (PDF) | Morehead State 3, UNCG 2 (PDF)
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG volleyball team nearly pulled off another remarkable comeback, down 2-0 in the finale of the Spartan Spiketacular Saturday night, but Morehead State edged the Spartans 3-2 in the match and 15-13 in the fifth set to capture the tournament title inside Fleming Gymnasium. UNCG fell to Youngstown State in four sets earlier in the day.
"We absolutely have to start matches better," head coach Patrick Nicholas said. "We get crowds in our gym rivaling any on the east coast and I would just like us to start rewarding the fans. We made no unforced errors in the fourth and fifth sets and I was really proud of that. We have a young team and errors will happen because of it. This team is close to exploding and being really good, but there are also too many times we take ourselves out of matches."
Junior
Karrian Chambers put together a solid offensive effort against the Eagles, putting down 17 kills on 37 attempts with just two errors to hit .405. She also racked up 14 digs to produce her first double-double of the year. Redshirt junior
Olivia Humphries joined Chambers in double figures with 12 kills. Freshman
Katherine Santiago was named the tournament's Top Libero for the second time this year as she posted a match-high 23 digs and compiled a 4.14 per set average for the weekend.
The Spartans out-hit Morehead State .168-.130, but the Eagles rebounded with a 12 kills and no errors in the fifth set to aid their cause. The visitors also produced 58 kills and six aces while UNCG won the defensive battle (digs) by a 74-66 count. The battle at the net belonged to Morehead State, which totaled 11.0 blocks to the Spartans' 8.0.
UNCG started the match off slowly, falling behind 4-0. After the Eagles' lead grew to 12-5 on a
Courtney Smith kill, the Spartans put together a 7-2 run to pull within 14-12, but Morehead State fended off the rally and clinched the first frame by a 25-19 count.
It was a much better start for the Spartans in the second interval, as three MSU attack errors helped UNCG build a 6-3 cushion. The Eagles answered with a 9-2 run which gave them a four-point lead, but a kill by
Kellie Orewiler capped a Spartan rally which made the score 12-11. UNCG could not capitalize on the momentum, however, as Morehead State outscored the Spartans 13-6 the rest of the frame.
As it has often this season, UNCG roared out of the locker room and quickly took an 8-4 advantage – prompting a timeout from the Eagle bench. The Spartans never let MSU into the interval as Humphries made the score 17-9 with kill and kept the Eagles at bay. UNCG would go on to win the set by a 25-16 score.
The teams traded the first two points of the fourth frame as sophomore
Emily McMurtrey was called for a ball-handling error but responded with a kill on the next rally. A Laura McDermott attacking error gave the home team a 10-7 lead and the teams began to side out from that point. With the score at 19-16 in favor of the Spartans, a McMurtrey kill and a MSU offensive miscue pushed the lead to five. Humphries would finish the set off with a kill, giving UNCG a 25-20 win.
Things looked promising at the beginning of the deciding set, as the Spartans scored three of the first four points, but the Eagles responded with a 9-4 run via some accurate hitting to take a 10-7 lead. A Hannah Sigala kill put Morehead State on the verge of victory as they led 13-9, but Chambers kept UNCG in the match with three consecutive kills to make it a one-point affair. The teams traded kills as the score reached 14-13 before Ann Gruenschlaeger put down a kill on the right side to ensure a win for Morehead State.
Sophomore
Kelsey Sidney matched her career high with 10 kills and hit .381 against the Penguins in the early match while junior
Karrian Chambers chipped in a team-high 11. Defensively, freshman
Katherine Santiago racked up 16 digs as the only Spartan to reach double figures.
UNCG was only able to muster a .148 hitting mark while Youngstown State was very efficient offensively with a .318 showing. The Penguins were stronger at the net, posting 11.0 total blocks as compared to 5.5 for the home side. YSU also held the upper hand in digs (71-53) and kills (56-46).
The beginning of the match was tightly contested as the teams settled into a 10-10 deadlock after 20 points. Youngstown State took control from there, however, scoring seven of the next nine points to go ahead 17-12 when Jackie Carlisle put down a kill. The Spartans could not recover despite calling a timeout, dropping the first frame 25-18.
UNCG fell behind 4-1 in the second interval and the Penguin advantage would only grow, as a
Julia Westerbur attack error put the Spartans in a 14-8 hole. YSU cruised from there, taking the second set by a 25-16 count.
As it did last night, UNCG came out on fire in the third frame and led 8-4 when freshman
Lauren Betlach tallied an ace. The advantage ballooned to 15-7 as the 7-3 run was capped off by a
Kellie Orewiler ace. The Penguins pulled to within six at 21-15 on a Shannon Watson kill, but it was too late as the Spartans stayed alive with a 25-17 set-three victory.
With the fourth interval knotted at seven, YSU went on a devastating 10-4 run which put it ahead 17-11. UNCG called timeout in an attempt to regroup, but the Spartans could not recover and lost the final frame 25-17.
UNCG opens Southern Conference play Thursday, Sept. 20 when the Spartans travel to Elon. First serve at Alumni Gym is slated for 7 p.m.
SPARTAN SPIKETACULAR ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM:
Leslie Schelhaas - Morehead State
Aryn Bohannon - Morehead State
Missy Hundelt - Youngstown State
Shannon Watson - Youngstown State
Olivia Humphries - UNCG
McKenzie Keightley - UNC Wilmington
Top Libero - Katherine Santiago (UNCG)
Tournament MVP - Courtney Smith (Morehead State)
- UNCG -
