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Georgia Southern University Athletics

Volleyball

Small Leads Eagles Past Catamounts, 3-1

STATESBORO, Ga.Parker Small (Charlotte, N.C.) uncorked 18 kills to lead Georgia Southern over Western Carolina 3-1 (25-13, 25-15, 18-25, 25-20) Friday night at the Ramsey Center. Four Eagles posted double-digit dig performances to improve Georgia Southern to 17-7 overall and 8-1 in Southern Conference play.

“I thought we played well and came out strong in the first two sets,” said Head Coach Chad Callihan. “We faltered in the third set, but I was proud of the team for rebounding in the fourth to pull out a good win on the road. We'll work on a few things tomorrow in practice and hopefully come out strong on Sunday against Appalachian State.”

Bethany Sanford
(Avondale, Ariz.) and Hannah Nelson (Norcross, Ga.) combined to add 17 kills to Small's 18, while Kate Van Dyke (Shawnee, Kan.) reeled in 46 assists. Ashley Roe (Campbell, Calif.) posted a team-best 17 digs followed by Sanford with 13, Van Dyke with 11 and Lauren LaRocque (Borger, Texas) with 10. Sarah Gildersleeve (Naples, Fla.) picked up a team-high five blocks.

Georgia Southern led 12-6 following a block assist from Van Dyke and Gildersleeve in the opening frame and closed out the set with a 25-13 win. A Sanford kill sparked a late 4-0 Eagle run that handed Georgia Southern set point at 24-12. The Catamounts fought off the first set point before Small capped the frame with her sixth kill of the set.

The second set saw an equally strong offensive output from the Eagles as Small led the attack with five kills. A pair of kills from the junior put the Eagles in front 12-6, forcing WCU to call a timeout. Small's fourth kill pushed the Catamounts to call their second timeout at 21-14 as the Eagles closed out the second set with a 25-15 win.

Western Carolina controlled the majority of the third set, climbing out to a 10-5 lead. Georgia Southern pulled to within two points at 16-14, but the Catamounts continued to widen their margin, taking set three, 25-18, to move the overall match to 2-1.

The Eagles rebounded in the fourth frame to seal the conference win with a 25-20 victory. Small led the attack with five kills on five swings for a perfect hitting percentage. Georgia Southern jumped out to a 9-4 lead, but Western Carolina narrowed its deficit to one point at 13-12. WCU tried kept the set close, but the Eagles closed out the frame with kills from Nelson and Lauren Claybaugh (Danville, Calif.) for the win.  

Georgia Southern closes out this three-match road trip at Appalachian State on Sunday, Oct. 24. First serve is slated for 2 p.m. Live stats can be accessed at www.GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com, but there will be no live video available.

Score updates for all Georgia Southern Volleyball matches will be available at twitter.com/GSScores and fans can get updated information on facebook.com/GSAthletics. Complete coverage of the Eagles can be found at www.GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com.
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