EMORY, Va. — The Tusculum University women’s volleyball team snapped its three-match losing streak on Tuesday (Oct. 8), finishing out the season sweep of Emory & Henry.
The Pioneers (6-9, 4-3 SAC) swept up the Wasps (2-12, 0-7 SAC) by scores of 25-20, 25-17, 25-20.
Brianna Hogan led E&H with eight kills, while Logan Newberry tallied 14 assists. Both Libby Bickelhaupt and Zoie Pace landed two service aces. The pair also accounted for 22 and 11 digs, respectively. Emma Catoe and Julissa Hopgood combined for the only block by the Wasps.
Jordyn Roderick had herself a game, landing 12 kills on a .500 average. Addison McLarty was not far behind with 12 kills on her own on a .393 hitting percentage. Martina Foster also reached double-digits with 10 kills. Rounding out the offense were Whitney Thompson (7), Olivia Crowl (5), and Madison Adkins (3). The latter dished out 37 assists as Foster was responsible for a pair of aces. Amiranee Au reached the 20-dig plateau once again, totaling 21 scoops. Crowl and Thompson were each credited with three blocks in the match.
Emory & Henry hit .115 as a team with 32 kills and 19 errors on 113 total attempts. Tusculum hit .342 with 49 kills, nine errors, and 117 total attacks. The Pioneers led the match in assists (45-31), digs (56-54), and total blocks (7-1), while the Wasps tallied more service aces (7-3).
Tusculum led the first set from start to finish, aided by a .325 hitting percentage to Emory & Henry’s .100. The Pioneers landed 16 kills on 40 swings, adding two aces and three rejections. Individually, Roderick went 4-for-7 with Crowl just behind at 3-for-6. Au tallied 10 digs in the first frame alone. TU began with a 3-0 lead to the set, steadily widening the gap. E&H made a couple runs, bringing the Wasps to within three each time. At 19-16, the visitors called a timeout, winning the four succeeding points and ultimately the set.
TU had its best hitting percentage of the match in set two at .378, collecting 16 kills to only two errors. Foster was 5-for-8 in the frame, landing the lone ace for the Pioneers. Emory & Henry claimed its first lead of the night on the first point of set two. Tusculum quickly swung the set back to its favor as a part of three lead changes and six ties. The Pioneers hit a groove midway through the frame, bouncing back from a 7-5 deficit. A 6-1 run was ended after an E&H timeout, but the Wasps never got back within two strikes of TU. Foster clinched the 2-0 match lead with her ace.
Set three was the most tightly contested, featuring nine ties and four lead changes. The Pioneers landed a match-high 17 kills on a .325 clip as McLarty (7) and Roderick (5) were responsible for the majority. The Wasps battled back to lead the frame 8-5 after Tusculum took the opening point. Down 14-13, TU went on a six-point spurt with Au behind the line, aided by three unforced errors by E&H. The home team responded with a 4-0 run to lessen the advantage. However, Roderick and McLarty would not be denied, putting the Pioneers back over .500 in the SAC.
Tusculum returns home for the second of two meetings with Coker this season. The Pioneers will look for a season sweep of the Cobras on Friday (Oct. 11) at 7 p.m.
