GREENSBORO, N.C. – The No. 3 seed and host UNCG volleyball team could not sustain the momentum from last night's quarterfinal comeback as second-seeded Samford won a 3-0 (25-18, 25-15, 25-23) contest in the second semifinal of the 2014 Southern Conference Volleyball Championship Sunday afternoon inside Fleming Gymnasium.

The Bulldogs advance to face off against top seed and regular season champion Furman in the championship match tomorrow night at 6 p.m. The Paladins came all the way back from a 0-2 deficit to edge No. 5 seed Western Carolina in the first semifinal matchup of the day.

The Blue and Gold, having fought admirably through a number of injuries this season to finish tied for second in the SoCon standings, played Sunday's match without 2014 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year Ashley Muench. In the two regular season meetings with Samford, she recorded 19 kills and hit .368.

UNCG ends the season with a 20-11 overall record, marking the first time since 2010 that the Spartans have posted 20 or more victories. The tournament semifinal appearance was also the first for the program since that same campaign.

In Sunday's contest, sophomore outside hitter Jessica Brezwyn tallied 10 kills while redshirt junior middle hitter Julia Westerbur hit .308 with seven kills on 13 attempts and three errors. Sophomore setter Sara Hohman ran the offense to the tune of 26 assists and racked up seven digs. Defensively, junior libero Katherine Santiago tallied 14 digs.

The Spartans hit just .085 (30k/21e/106ta) as a team, including a negative mark in the second stanza, while the Bulldogs checked in at .297 (41k/11e/101ta). Samford also notched more digs (47-42) and blocks (6.0-3.0).

Things got off on the right foot for UNCG in the first set after a Erin Bognar service error put the Blue and Gold in front at 6-4. The Bulldogs rallied to tie the set at nine before a kill by Hohman made it a 10-9 scoreline. After an attacking error by the Spartans allowed Samford to take a 15-12 advantage, UNCG called for timeout. The Blue and Gold burned its last timeout later, trailing 18-15, but could not quite get back into the frame. The Spartans pulled within 20-17 thanks to a ball-handling error called on the Bulldogs, but Samford scored five of the last six points to clinch the set.

UNCG was able to stay close in the beginning of the second frame, but with the Bulldogs leading 11-10, a couple of errors by the Spartans allowed the cushion to grow to three at 13-10. UNCG used a timeout after Samford stretched its advantage to 16-12 via a Bognar kill. The Blue and Gold could muster just three more points in the set as the Bulldogs took a 2-0 overall lead into the intermission.

The Spartans came out with a renewed energy in the third frame as they attempted to extend the match. UNCG forced Samford into an early timeout when an attacking error by Emily Meitz afforded the home team an 11-5 lead. The Bulldogs rallied at that point, scoring six of the next seven to draw within 12-11. The teams battled to a deadlock at 18 before Samford notched the next two rallies to push in front 20-18. The Spartans put forth one last push, going on a 5-1 run to take a 23-21 lead, but a Bulldog timeout settled the No. 2 seed down and Samford would capture the final four rallies to complete the sweep.

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