Volleyball Closes Out SpringHill Suites Invitational Undefeated
9/19/2010 2:05:00 AM | Volleyball
STATESBORO, Ga. – The Georgia Southern Volleyball team closed out the 2010 SpringHill Suites Invitational undefeated after topping East Tennessee State and Charleston Southern on Saturday (September 18). Kate Van Dyke (Shawnee, Kan.) was named the Tournament MVP and was joined by Bethany Sanford (Avondale, Ariz.) and Parker Small (Charlotte, N.C.) on the all-tournament team.
After going 4-0 in the tournament, Georgia Southern now stands at 8-6 on the season.
“We're really pleased with the progress we've made this season and even just this weekend,” stated Head Coach Chad Callihan. “We felt like we got a little better each match and we were really pleased with the team's performance tonight. We thought the girls came out with a lot of energy and really executed well. It was a good way to wrap things up.”
Georgia Southern 3, East Tennessee State 1
Despite dropping the first set to the Bucs, the Eagles regrouped and defeated East Tennessee State 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-20) in the opening match of the day. Sanford picked up her ninth double-double of the season, leading the team with 16 kills to go along with 16 digs. Enjoli Johnson (Lilburn, Ga.) posted her best showing of the season, logging 14 kills. Small rounded out the double-digit kill numbers with 13. Moriah Bellissimo (Blackstone, Va.) led the Eagles with a career-high 24 digs, while Van Dyke led the charge with 50 assists.
East Tennessee State opened with a 4-0 run to start the match and held the lead the remainder of the frame. Trailing 22-17, Georgia Southern responded with a 3-0 run to cut the score to 22-21. But ETSU closed out the opening set, 25-22.
Georgia Southern and ETSU tied the score eight times with one lead change in the second frame. Again, the Bucs gained the early lead, holding the advantage through a 17-17 tie. The Eagles took their first lead of the match at 18-17 and used a 6-2 run to cap the set with a 25-21 victory. Georgia Southern's .342 attack percentage in the set was highlighted by five Small kills.
The Eagles opened set three with a 5-1 run, but the Bucs charged back, knotting the score at 6-6. ETSU took a slight advantage thereafter, but Georgia Southern took its final lead at 11-10, capturing the set, 25-20.
In the fourth set, Georgia Southern once again opened with a 3-0 run, but ETSU quickly tied the score at 3-all. The teams kept the set close with neither team leading by more than two points until 21-20 when the Eagles sealed the match win with a 4-0 run. Sanford and Johnson both posted five kills in the set to lead the Eagles.
“ETSU played some great ball and definitely got our attention,” noted Callihan. “It was nice to see us step up and meet the challenge.”
Georgia Southern 3, Charleston Southern 0
Georgia Southern hit a season-best .431 en route to sweeping the Charleston Southern Buccaneers (25-15, 25-12, 25-17). Sanford notched 15 kills and just missed a double-double with nine digs. Small also picked up 15 kills, hitting at a .667 clip with only one error on 21 attempts. Ashley Roe (Campbell, Calif.) and Van Dyke both posted match-highs with 14 digs and 41 assists, respectively.
CSU held the Eagles tight in the opening frame until a Georgia Southern 8-0 run sparked by a Small kill handed the Eagles a 10-point lead at 19-9. Sanford and Small each posted a pair of kills in the run as Georgia Southern took the first set, 25-15.
Committing no errors in the second set, Georgia Southern tallied 17 kills for a .567 clip. The Eagles opened with a 3-1 run and following a Small kill, put together a 6-0 run to grab a 9-1 lead. A trio of Eagle kills intermixed with a Buccaneer error and three Amanda Hall kills put the Eagles in front, 13-4. Georgia Southern climbed out to an 18-7 lead after four unanswered points and took set two, 25-12.
Small led the Eagles in set three with six kills as Charleston Southern tied the score twice early on. But Georgia Southern jumped out to an 11-5 advantage following three unanswered Eagle points and took an 18-10 lead after a Sanford kill. CSU closed to within five points at 20-15 following a 4-0 run, but could not hold off the Eagles as Georgia Southern sealed the win with a 25-17 third set win.
With the SpringHill Suites Tournament, Georgia Southern concluded fall tournament play and opens Southern Conference action next. The Eagles travel to Wofford on Sept. 24 and challenge Furman on Sept. 25. Match times are set for 7 p.m. both nights.
Other Action…
Charleston Southern defeated South Alabama, 3-2
East Tennessee State def. Winthrop, 3-2
