BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The UNCG volleyball team notched a signature win and did it with style Saturday afternoon, sweeping the Southern Conference's top team in Samford (25-19, 25-19, 25-21) on its home court.

The victory snapped the Bulldogs' 11-match winning streak and marked the first-ever win for the Spartans at the Pete Hanna Center. UNCG is also now 4-2 on the road in conference play as three of those triumphs have come via the sweep.

For the second-straight contest, the Blue and Gold executed a clean offense while playing great defensive volleyball. UNCG (14-9, 6-4 SoCon) out-hit Samford (15-8, 9-1) .245 to .131 and out-dug the Bulldogs 52-40. The Spartans also had the better of the blocking 7.0 – 5.0 while tallying more kills (38-31) and assists (34-27).

Freshman outside hitter Ashley Muench wrapped up a solid week by tallying a match-high 13 kills to go along with eight digs. Sophomore setter Sara Hohman picked up her 12^th double-double of the season with 31 assists and 12 digs while sophomore outside hitter Jessica Brezwyn chipped in with 12 digs, five kills and a block. UNCG served Samford tough in the match as senior middle hitter Kelsey Sidney finished the afternoon with three service aces.

A service error by Chelsi Carter opened the match and put the Spartans in the lead and UNCG would extend the advantage to 8-4 after a kill by Muench. A Bulldog block briefly knotted the score at 10 before another block by the home team left the score at 12-12. The Blue and Gold seized control in the middle of the set, frustrating Samford into calling a timeout with the Spartans in front 19-15. The Bulldogs rallied within 20-17 but UNCG reached set point at 24-18 thanks to another kill by Muench. After an attacking error by UNCG, SoCon Preseason Player of the Year Michaela Reesor served a ball into the net to give the Spartans the frame by a 25-19 margin.

The teams battled throughout the early portion of the second set but the Bulldogs were able to establish some breathing room at 12-10. The lead grew to 13-10 after a kill by TJ Russell. However, UNCG was not fazed and ripped off an 11-1 run to push in front 21-14. Samford had no answer after that as a kill by redshirt junior middle hitter Julia Westerbur ended the second set 25-19 in the Spartans' favor and gave the Blue and Gold a 2-0 overall lead at intermission.

A pair of blocks and a kill afforded UNCG a 4-1 lead to begin set three. Despite the Bulldogs' best efforts, the Spartans were not about to relinquish the advantage and forced the home side into a timeout after an attacking error by Reesor gave the Spartans a 14-7 advantage. Samford made a push at that point, rallying to within 15-12. However, a kill by senior middle hitter Vicky Harley capped a 6-3 run for UNCG that extended the Spartans' cushion to 21-15. The Blue and Gold would find itself with a 23-17 lead and on the brink of the sweep but the Bulldogs had one more rally in them. The serve of Carter forced UNCG to use two timeouts as Samford pulled within 23-21 but UNCG stuck together and used kills from Brezwyn and Muench to turn back to Bulldogs and clinch the sweep.

The Spartans return home to Fleming Gymnasium for their next two matches as they will help the UNCG campus celebrate Homecoming. The Blue and Gold will host East Tennessee State Friday on Halloween Night (7 p.m.) before wrapping up the weekend Saturday against Furman (5 p.m.).

Follow the UNCG volleyball team all season by logging on to www.uncgspartans.com and following the Spartans' official Twitter accounts @UNCGVB and @uncgsports.