JACKSON, Tenn. — The Tusculum University women’s volleyball team finished out the Union University Classic with a pair of wins on Saturday (Aug. 29), sweeping Lane before downing the hosting Bulldogs in four sets.
The Black and Orange (3-1) begins South Atlantic Conference play on Tuesday, Sept. 1 at Carson-Newman. The remainder of the Pioneers’ slate is within league action.
Match 1: Tusculum 3, Lane 0
The Pioneers (2-1) started off the day with a sweep of Lane (0-3) in convincing fashion, by scores of 25-16, 25-11, 25-12.
The Dragons were led by seven kills by Alexandra Garcia, while McKenzie Tripp (8) and Kendyl Gaines (7) combined for 15 assists. Andrijana Cicvaric landed the lone Lane service ace and scooped up a match-high 18 digs. At the net, both Athena Rossiter and Trinity Ford were credited with a pair of block assists.
Karris Oller hit a resounding .524 with a match-best 13 kills, followed by 10 strikes from Grace VanZwieten. Maggie Szlachcic landed eight kills on a .500 clip, joined by Grayson LaFrance (6), Addison McLarty (5), Jordan Moore (2), Jaida Alvin (2), Mackenzie Land (2), Gracie Hibdon (1), and Victoria Church (1). Church dished out 26 assists to Hibdon’s 14. The former also added three aces. Mary Katherine Hall and Maggie Kane both reached double figures in digs with 14 and 11, respectively. At the net, Oller finished with two total blocks.
Lane finished the match with an even .000 hitting percentage with 17 kills and 17 attack errors in 104 total attempts. Tusculum totaled 50 kills, 17 errors, and 115 swings for a .287 hitting clip. The Pioneers led the Dragons in assists (48-17), service aces (5-1), digs (63-44), and total blocks (4-3).
The Pioneers set the tone immediately in the opener, posting 18 kills in set one and hitting .217 while keeping Lane to six kills and six errors. Tusculum’s best stretch came in set two, where it hit a blistering .458 (13 kills to just two errors) to pull away early and never let Lane recover. In set three, the Pioneers maintained the tempo with 19 more kills and took the final frame 25-12 to complete the sweep in 1:17.
Match 2: Tusculum 3, Union 1
TU wrapped up the tournament with a four set win over hosting Union Bulldogs (2-2): 25-21, 25-15, 20-25, 25-13.
Union was led by 13 kills from Carleigh Charles, with Kylie Creech dishing out 36 assists. Sarah-Kate Savage landed a trio of aces, as three Bulldogs scooped up double-digit digs: Isabella Messer (15), Elizabeth Gilbert (14), and Carly Edwards (11). At the net, Julia Stuible was credited with four total blocks.
Eight Pioneers got into the scoring column, led by McLarty’s 11 kills. Oller added nine kills on an errorless .529 rate, followed by VanZwieten (8), Land (7), Szlachcic (7), Hibdon (2), Moore (1), and Church (1). Church (18) and Hibdon (11) finished with a combined 29 assists, just ahead of Hall’s career-best nine. Kane continued her strong start behind the line with four aces in the match. Both Hall and Land net double figures in digs with 16 and 13, respectively. Up front, Moore recorded three block assists.
Union finished the contest with a .136 hitting percentage with 42 kills and 24 attack errors in 132 total attempts. Tusculum totaled 46 kills, 14 errors, and 127 swings for a .252 hitting clip. The Pioneers led the match in assists (43-40), digs (57-55), and total blocks (6-4), while the Bulldogs tallied more service aces (8-6).
Tusculum set the tone by winning the first two sets, 25-21 and 25-15, holding Union to a combined .073 hitting clip across those frames (.050 in set one, .094 in set two). The Pioneers were efficient offensively in both sets and capitalized on Union miscues, particularly at the net and in transition.
Union flipped the match in the third set with its best offensive stretch of the night, hitting .344 behind 16 kills. That surge powered the Bulldogs to a 25-20 win to extend the match.
Tusculum responded immediately in the fourth, posting its best hitting percentage of the match (.300) while limiting Union to .071. The Pioneers pulled away decisively for a 25-13 finish to close out the 3–1 victory.
