The UNC Asheville volleyball team consolidated its position atop the Big South Conference standings on Friday night with a hard-fought victory in five sets on the road against conference rival Radford. The Bulldogs (13-5, 2-0) rallied from a 2-1 deficit, winning consecutive sets to take the match from the Highlanders (9-8, 0-2).
Asheville was once again driven by standout performances from seniors Lauren Ficker (16 kills, .455 hitting percentage, 14 digs) and Raquel Miotto (27 digs), but the match saw exceptional performances from a number of Bulldogs. Sophomore Cindi Miller added 13 kills, junior Rachel Guinane had 47 assists to go with 6 kills, and seniors Brooke and Bridget Holliday totaled 13 and 10 digs, respectively. It was also a big night for Asheville’s freshmen. Playing in front of family and friends from her nearby hometown of Christianburg, Chelsie Kenley recorded eight kills, two blocks, and two digs. Holly Shelton turned in a team-high four blocks, along with seven kills. The Bulldogs faced a varied attack from Radford. Four different Highlanders posted double-digit kills, including senior Lauren Clary who had a match-high 17.
The Bulldogs will be back in action this Friday night (October 2) when they take on Charleston Southern (9-6, 1-0) at the Justice Center in an early key matchup in the Big South conference title hunt.
The men’s soccer team traveled to Lexington yesterday to take on national power Kentucky. Defense reigned in the first half and the match remained scoreless headed into intermission, thanks in part to two critical saves from Lassi Hurskainen. It was Asheville that broke the silence first when, in the 51st minute, freshman David Wood delivered a cross to sophomore Bryan Bartels who beat the goalkeeper with a line-drive header for the 1-0 advantage. Unfortunately, the Bulldogs’ lead over the 20th ranked Wildcats would prove short-lived. Kentucky responded with two goals in the 54th minute to claim the lead and then cemented the advantage with the match’s final goal, in the 83rd minute. Goalkeeper Dan Williams made four saves in the second half (equaling Hurskainen’s match total) to keep the Asheville attack at bay. The Wildcats outshot the Bulldogs 24-7, and held a 6-2 advantage in corner kicks.
Asheville will be in action at Greenwood Field tomorrow for its final tune-up before conference play begins. The Bulldogs (3-5-1) take on East Tennessee State (1-3-2) at 4pm. The Buccaneers have performed well against some of the nation’s best this season, defeating Virginia Tech and forcing double overtime before falling to second-ranked North Carolina. Admission to the match is free, and it can also be viewed online on the Big South Network.
The UNC Asheville volleyball team consolidated its position atop the Big South Conference standings on Friday night with a hard-fought victory in five sets on the road against conference rival Radford.
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