STATESBORO– Georgia Southern volleyball (4-0) improved its unblemished start to 4-0, taking down UNCW (0-4) in straight sets on Friday, holding the Seahawks to an .089 hitting percentage.
"Tonight's win started with our service pressure," head coach
Chad Willis said. "I thought we did a nice job of making them uncomfortable early and play through our defense, averaging almost 16 digs per set."
After trading points early on, the Eagles separated from the Seahawks up 9-8.
Reagan Barth staked her claim in a 5-0 run, recording three kills in that span to put GS up 14-8.
The Eagles didn't yield much for the remainder of the set.
Sam Bowron picked up a few kills in the remainder of the set as the home team took it 25-17.
GS absolutely owned the early portion of the second set from the service line, recording four aces in an 11-2 run to open, including three by Barth. Also in this sequence was the first career kill for
Mayte Camacho, an overpass dig that landed in between all the Seahawks.
Kayla Knowles and
Lydia Seymour combined on a block to go up 16-5, and the Eagles kept the foot on the gas pedal, cruising to a 25-13 win, closed out by a
Gabby Babinski kill.
The two teams were deadlocked early, but the blue & white pulled away late once again.
Kirsten Barrett found the floor to make it 13-8, and consecutive kills by Barth and Bowron pushed it to 15-9.
A service error, a Camacho ace and a bad set from UNCW put the Eagles at set point. After a service error,
Ailie Hair claimed the final kill, sealing the second straight sweep and fourth consecutive win for GS.
Barth had 11 kills to pace the floor, and Bowron had another strong effort, notching nine kills and 12 digs in the win.
"We talk a lot in practice about protecting the kill, and that showed on all sides tonight," Bowron said. "We weren't letting anything hit the floor without a body going down with it."
Maddie Cugino continued her strong defensive presence in the win, averaging five digs per set with 15. She has 80 digs through four games as an Eagle.
GS will have another night game tomorrow against Pacific, the first matchup between the two in team history.
