Sept. 19, 2008

Miami Volleyball Opens ACC Season with 3-1 Win over FSU

Coral Gables, Fla. - A near-capacity crowd of 834 was on hand at the James L. Knight Sports Complex Friday night to witness redshirt sophomore Lici McGee collect a career-high 11 blocks (seven assists) and freshman Lane Carico tally a season-high 16 kills to lead the University of Miami over visiting Florida State University, 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-22, 31-29) in an ACC volleyball match in Coral Gables, Fla. In the process, the Hurricanes continue their undefeated season (11-0), and extend the second-longest winning streak in school history at 13 matches.

After dropping the first set to the Seminoles (8-3, 0-1 ACC), Miami stepped it up in the last three sets.

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Blue Devils Open Charleston Invitational With Sweep Over College of Charleston

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Freshman setter Kellie Catanach served up 45 assists and put down six kills to lead the Duke volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-16, 25-21, 25-20) win over College of Charleston on the opening day of the Charleston Invitational Friday night in John Kresse Arena.

Catanach, a 6-2 setter, directed the Blue Devils (7-3, 0-0 ACC) to a .427 hitting percentage against the Cougars (5-5) and also helped out on the defensive end with three blocks and four digs. Catanach was just as efficient with her attacking and did not make an error in her eight attempts on the way to a career-high .750 hitting percentage.

Jackets Capture 2008 Clemson Classic Title with 3-0 Sweep of FAMU

CLEMSON, S.C. - Brittany Roderick and Asia Stawicka combined for 17 block assists to lead Georgia Tech (9-2) to a 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-21) sweep of Florida A&M (2-7) Friday afternoon at Jervey Gym. With the win, the Yellow Jackets captured the 2008 Clemson Classic title, giving the team their second tournament title of the season.

One day after posting a season-high 28 kills in a five-set win over Clemson, Talisa Kellogg powered the Yellow Jacket offense, hitting .414 while tallying 14 kills on 29 attempts. Freshman Bailey Hunter also had an excellent showing on the outside for the Jackets, hitting .615 with nine kills in two sets.

Carolina Handles Winthrop, 3-1

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The North Carolina volleyball team improved to 5-4 on the season Friday night in Minneapolis, Minn. as the Tar Heels beat Winthrop 3-1 (25-20, 25-15, 17-25, 25-21) in the opening match of the Gopher Invitational. The trio of Courtney Johnston, Heather Brooks and Lauren Prussing combined for 31 kills on the night. Carolina will take on TCU at 10 a.m. CT on Saturday before closing out the tournament at 7 p.m. CT against Minnesota.

The Tar Heels and Eagles traded points in the beginning of the match as neither team was able to gain momentum. A setting error on Carolina made the score 7-5 in favor of Winthrop before senior Stephanie Jansma picked up a kill later in the set to tie the opening set up at 9-9. From that point the Tar Heels would slowly take over the set as Christine Vaughen forced Winthrop into a timeout with the score at 16-13 after a kill. Carolina would then take three of the next five points to gain a 19-15 advantage and force the second Winthrop timeout of the set.

NC State Volleyball Blanks Morgan State, 3-0

GREENVILLE, N.C. – NC State volleyball shut out Morgan State, 3-0, on Friday, Sept. 19 in its first match at the East Carolina Tournament in Greenville, N.C. The win moves the Pack to 5-8 on the year, while the Lady Bears fall to 1-13. NC State never trailed at any time during the match, despite five tied scores.

Arlee Tamietti led State with 12 kills, while Alex Smith recorded 20 assists. Nikki Sweet picked up six digs, and Jana Angel had three total blocks. Four Wolfpack players landed service aces and NC State hit a solid .375 throughout play.

Hokies sweep UNC Wilmington in Seahawk Classic

WILMINGTON, N.C.- Virginia Tech opened the Seahawk Classic with a sweep over host UNC Wilmington 3-0, (25-15, 25-10, 25-21) in Hanover Hall on Friday night in Wilmington, N.C. to jump out to the program’s best start since 1995.

The Hokies (8-2, 0-0 ACC) used strong serving and some key play from several freshmen in the final set to secure the victory. Tech registered nine service aces to the Seahawks’ (6-5, 0-0 CAA) two in the win. Freshman Justine Record tallied 10 kills, while Felicia Willoughby and Taylor Parrish both added eight apiece.

Two Deacons record Double-Doubles in 3-1 win over Appalachian State

BOONE, N.C. - Wake Forest got double-doubles from sophomores Kristen White and Kelsey Jones as well as a career-high 25 digs from Abby Miller to post a 3-1 win over Appalachian State on the first night of the Appalachian State Invitational.

The Deacons dropped the first set 25-18 but rallied to win the next three sets 25-23, 26-24 and 25-21. The win was the fourth straight for Deacs, who improve to 7-3 on the season. The loss drops ASU to 2-10.

Maryland Volleyball Swept by In-state Rival Towson

TOWSON, Md. - Senior Maggie Schmelzle moved into a tie for third place in school history in digs as the University of Maryland volleyball team lost to in-state rival Towson in straight sets during first-round play of the Towson Invitational Friday evening.

Schmelzle recorded five digs to tie Eden Kroeger for third, but the host Tigers won 25-23, 25-20 and 25-21.

The Terps (2-8) led 11-9 in the first set, but fell victim to a big Tiger run to fall behind 16-11. The Tigers led 22-17 and seemed to be in control of the set, however, the Terps answered with a 5-0 to tie the score at 22 and force a Towson timeout.

Cavaliers Fall to Nationally-Ranked Bruins

EVANSTON, Ill. – Despite a strong fight from the Virginia volleyball team, the Cavaliers dropped their opening match at the Wildcat Classic to No. 4 UCLA, 0-3 (17-25, 23-25, 17-25).

Third-year Lauren Dickson (Austin, Texas) led the squad with 13 kills and nine digs, while second-year Kelly Irvin dished out 24 assists.

Cavaliers’ Rally Falls Short in Five Set Loss to Northwestern

EVANSTON, Ill. – A late rally from the Cavaliers fell short in the fifth set as Northwestern escaped with a 15-13 deciding set victory over the Virginia volleyball team Friday evening at the Wildcat Classic. The 2-3 (15-25, 25-23, 17-25, 15-25, 13-15) loss drops Virginia to 7-4 on the season, while the Wildcats improve to 6-4.