Volleyball Wins 11th Straight, Beats Furman 3-0
11/10/2012 1:55:33 AM | Volleyball
VIDEO: Post-match interview with Coach Chad Callihan
VIDEO: Post-match interview with OH Meredith Paskert
STATESBORO, Ga. - Seniors Moriah Bellisimo and Meredith Paskert combined for 22 kills en route to a 3-0 (25-23, 25-14, 25-16) win over Furman Friday night in Hanner Field House. The win extended the Eagles’ winning streak to 11 matches. The Eagles needs one more win to earn the Conference South Division title.
Alexandra Beecher contributed 15 digs for the Eagles (23-6, 14-1 SoCon) and Kim Coley added eight kills and two blocks on the night. Kate Van Dyke was credited with 37 assists.
Christina Dorismond led the Paladins (21-10, 9-7 SoCon) with 10 kills, Natalie Braun registered 12 digs and Jo Wilks added 34 assists.
The first set proved to be the toughest set of the match as it developed in a back and forth battle with eight ties and five lead changes. With the game tied at 19 Georgia Southern scored five consecutive points to increase the score to 24-19. Furman, however, fought back and diminished the Eagles’ lead to one point before Bellisimo recorded her sixth kill to finish the game.
After the score was tied 5-5 in the second set, the Eagles never looked back and took the set 25-14 behind four Coley kills and 10 assists and a service ace from Dyke.
“We got better as the match went on,” Georgia Southern Head Coach Chad Callihan said. “Our passing kept us in it until our defense picked up and we were able to string together a few points.”
With a score of 11-10 in the third set, Georgia Southern scored four unanswered points including a service ace by Paskert and never trailed again to take the match. Furman looked to gain back momentum by decreasing the difference to 15-11 but the Eagles responded quickly with Van Dyke setting up Jamie DeRatt, Coley and Bellisimo twice for four Georgia Southern kills. Bellisomo finished her strong performance with the match-winning kill for a final score of 25-16.
Georgia Southern finishes off the regular season Sunday when they take on Wofford at 7:00 p.m.
Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics and twitter.com/GSAthletics, and its new "Eagles GATA" mobile app for Android and iOS.
