Sept. 6, 2008

Wolfpack Volleyball Outlasts Air Force, 3-2

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – NC State ended its stay at the Air Force Academy Tournament on Saturday, Sept. 6, with its second-straight win, a thrilling 3-2 decision over hosting Air Force. The win pushes the Pack to 2-6 on the year, while the Falcons fall to 1-6.

Arlee Tamietti’s 18 kills did the brunt of State’s damage, while Jana Angel supplied 10 of her own. Alex Smith put up a season-best 37 assists, and Kelly Wood (18) and Lindsay Benac (11) combined for 29 digs. Margaret Salata landed three service aces, and Angel and Salata each had seven total blocks.

NC State Volleyball Sweeps Montana State, 3-0

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – NC State dominated in its first victory of the season, a 3-0 shutout over Montana State, at the Air Force Academy Tournament in its first of two matches on Saturday, Sept. 6. The win is the Pack’s first decision in four tries against the Bobcats.

Arlee Tamietti and Allyson Weissberg sprinkled nine kills each, while Alex Smith lifted 27 assists. Tamietti and Aiwane Iboaya both recorded four blocks, while Nikki Sweet and Kelly Wood each had nine digs. Wood also scored the Pack’s lone service ace.

UM Wins Hurricane Invitational by Defeating VCU, 3-0

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - The University of Miami volleyball team was not to be denied on Saturday evening as they completed a 3-0 shutout (25-19, 25-21, 25-9) of Virginia Commonwealth University to capture the 2008 Hurricane Invitational at the James L. Knight Sports Complex in Coral Gables, Fla.

After defeating Alabama earlier in the day, the Hurricanes were determined to capture their second consecutive tournament title in as many weeks when they stepped on the court against the VCU Rams in the evening.

Miami Too Much for Alabama in Volleyball Action, 3-1

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - Miami improved to 2-0 in the Hurricane Invitational with a 3-1 victory (22-25, 25-16, 25-20, 25-22) over the University of Alabama on Saturday afternoon in the James L. Knight Sports Complex.

Trailing 1-0 after the first set, Miami surged back in the final three sets to keep their hopes alive for a second consecutive regular season tournament title--following a win last week at the Century Tel Premier Tournament in Texas.

Tar Heels Take Carolina Classic

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - North Carolina did not trail in its final match of the Carolina Classic as the Tar Heels rolled to a 3-0 (25-10, 25-14, 25-18) sweep of Davidson in front of a crowd of 966 to improve to 3-3 on the year. Senior Stephanie Jansma earned Most Valuable Player honors for the tournament as she turned in 71 assists in the three victories for the Tar Heels. North Carolina will now travel to Colorado to take on Colorado State and Colorado in a pair of non-conference tilts next week.

The key for the Tar Heels all weekend was their ability to stop any sort of run from their opponent and did just that to start the opening set against Davidson as the Tar Heels converted nine of 10 potential sideouts. Courtney Johnston led the team with three kills in the opening frame while hitting .500 to lead Carolina to a .438 team hitting percentage. Carolina cruised to a 25-10 opening set win.

Carolina Takes Down Georgetown In Three

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - A season-high 15 blocks helped propel the North Carolina volleyball team to its second consecutive sweep in the Carolina Classic on Saturday as the Tar Heels took down Georgetown 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-16). Ingrid Hanson-Tuntland led the attack with seven kills on a .538 hitting percentage with a team-high nine blocks. Suzanne Haydel led the Tar Heels in kills for the second consecutive match with an even dozen. Carolina will take on Davidson in the finale of the Carolina Classic at 7 p.m. in the Smith Center.

The Tar Heels got off to a great start once again as they converted 11 of 15 sideout chances in the opening set and used four kills from Heather Brooks to take the set 25-16. Carolina found itself in an early hole but battled back to even the score at 10-10 before reeling off eight consecutive points to take a commanding 18-10 lead. Georgetown's attempt to chip away at the deficit would not develop as Carolina cruised to the 25-16 opening set win.

Duke Stuns Georgia 3-2 To Win Duke Invitational

DURHAM, N.C. – Led by a 20-kill effort from Rachael Moss and a 30-dig performance from Claire Smalzer, the Duke volleyball team overcame a 2-0 deficit against Georgia to stun the Bulldogs with a 3-2 (24-26, 19-25, 25-19, 25-18, 15-13) win on the final day of the Duke Invitational Saturday in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Duke trailed 2-0 after dropping both sets to the Bulldogs, but rallied to win the next two frames to force a do-or-die fifth set. The Blue Devils were poised to win the final set after jumping ahead 14-8, but the Bulldogs did not go away easily and came within one point of tying it up at 14-13. Moss, who was named tournament MVP, came through when her team needed her though, and won the match with her 20th kill of the afternoon.

Tech Volleyball Sweeps Xavier, 3-0, in Regency Suites Classic

ATLANTA - Callie Miller and Talisa Kellogg paced the Yellow Jackets with nine kills apiece and Michelle Kandell eclipsed 20 digs for the first time this season as Georgia Tech (5-0) swept Xavier (4-1), 3-0 (26-24, 25-19, 26-24), Saturday evening at O'Keefe Gym. The win was the Yellow Jackets' second in the tournament, and Tech wraps up play in the Regency Suites Classic Sunday when they host 25th-ranked Michigan at 2 p.m.

Miller and Kellogg led a balanced attack as six different Yellow Jackets logged at least five kills in the match. Alison Campbell had eight kills and Asia Stawicka and Brittany Roderick added five apiece. Senior setter Allie Niekamp ran the offense and was stellar on defense, posting her first double-double of the season with 32 assists and 11 digs against Xavier.

Volleyball Drops Tournament Finale to Kentucky

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Senior Maggie Schmelzle posted a match-high 15 digs to move into fourth place in school history in a 3-0 loss to Kentucky Saturday evening in the final match of the Spring Hill Suites at Arundel Mills Maryland Volleyball Invitational.

Kentucky (5-2) swept Maryland (1-5) by scores of 25-13, 25-21 and 25-11 to win the tournament championship. St. John's was the runner-up while Missouri finished third.

Terps Drop Nail-biter to St. John's in Five Sets

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Despite leading throughout most of the match, the University of Maryland volleyball dropped a tough, five-set contest to St. John's Saturday morning in the Spring Hill Suites at Arundel Mills Maryland Volleyball Invitational.

St. John's (4-2) won by scores of 21-25, 25-19, 23-25, 26-24 and 15-12 in the first-ever match between the two teams.

Tiger Volleyball Finishes Second At UNI Invitational

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - Lia Proctor led the Tigers in kills in both matches on Saturday as the Clemson volleyball team finished second at the UNI Invitational over the Sept. 5-6 weekend. The Tigers swept Northern Illinois (25-17, 25-19, 25-10) in the morning but fell to the host Panthers in four sets (25-23, 22-25, 25-22, 25-18) in the finale at night.

For her performance in the event Proctor earned her first all-tournament selection of her career. The junior from Inman, SC led the team with 42 kills in the three matches and also tallied 28 digs and seven blocks. Senior Danielle Hepburn was named to her second all-tournament team of the season after recording 28 kills and 20 blocks.

Just hours after their best offensive performance of the year, the Tigers (4-2) turned in their lowest hitting percentage against Northern Iowa. Proctor matched her season high with 16 kills and recorded the first double-double of her career with 16 digs as well. Hepburn had 10 kills and eight blocks for the nightcap, while Didem Ege tallied 19 defensive saves.

Cavaliers rally to defeat Tennessee in five-set thriller

DENVER, Colo. - The Tennessee Volunteers rallied from an 0-2 deficit in Saturday’s opening match of the Denver Pioneer Invitational to force a fifth-frame, but the Virginia volleyball team rallied for a dominating 15-6 victory in the deciding set for a win over the Volunteers. The Cavaliers won the first two frames, 25-23 and 25-19, before dropping the third and fourth sets, 19-25 and 22-25.

Second-year Kendahl Voelker (Fort Myers, Fla.) led the Cavaliers in the final frame, landing three of Virginia’s five kills, including one at 11-6 that forced Tennessee to call a timeout, and sparked a 5-0 run that led Virginia to the 15-6 match win.

Iowa Rallies to Defeat Cavaliers in Five-Sets

DENVER, Colo – For the second time today, the Cavaliers went up 2-0 in the match and fell in the third and fourth set to rely on a deciding game. Against Iowa, the Virginia volleyball team wasn’t as fortunate as earlier in the day, as it dropped a 15-9 decision to the Hawkeyes to conclude the Denver Pioneer Invitational with a 1-2 record.

Tech Sweeps ETSU to Close Out Tournament

HUNTINGTON, W.Va.- The Virginia Tech volleyball team closed out the Marshall University Tournament in Huntington, W. Va. on a high note Saturday evening, defeating East Tennessee State 3-0 (25-20, 25-14, 25-12).

Hokies Fall In Five-Set Thriller

HUNTINGTON, W. Va.- A furious rally from the Hokies volleyball squad fell short, as Tech dropped its second consecutive five-set match to Western Kentucky 3-2 (18-25, 17-25, 25-20, 25-20, 11-15) Saturday morning in Huntington, W. Va.

BC Volleyball Falls to Rhode Island 3-2

Chestnut Hill, MA - The Boston College women's volleyball team fell to Rhode Island in their final match of the Ram Classic Invitational on Saturday.

After falling behind two sets to one, the Eagles battled back to even the match at two and force a fifth set.