The Bulldogs wrapped up a four match road trip over the weekend with victories in pivotal contests against Liberty and High Point. On Friday night, UNC Asheville defeated Liberty in four sets (25-18, 21-25, 25-21, 25-20) in a battle for sole possession of first place in the Big South conference. On Saturday afternoon, the Bulldogs held on to their advantage with a win in four (25-16, 13-25, 26-24, 25-21) against an improved High Point squad.
Friday’s contest matched the two teams that have topped the Big South standings all season long. The Flames (16-11, 11-3) hoped to even the season series after a 3-1 defeat at the Justice Center on October 10th, but were overpowered by the Asheville attack. Kelsey Benorden produced 25 kills, a .370 hitting average, 15 digs, and 2 blocks, to lead the charge. Cindi Miller chipped in 10 kills, Rachel Guinane had 43 assists, and three other Bulldogs added double-figure digs – Raquel Miotto (24), Bridgett Holliday (19), and Brooke Holliday (12). Liberty was powered by a pair of preseason all-conference selections. Chelaine McCarty turned in 16 kills while hitting .282, and Nicki Scripko posted team-highs in kills (17) and digs (16).
On Saturday afternoon, Asheville was able to avoid any hangover from the previous night’s victory and came away with a critical win against a High Point team that has improved dramatically since falling in consecutive sets at the Justice Center on October 9. After dropping the first set, High Point (16-15, 5-9) dominated the second, but was unable to hold off the Bulldogs from that point. High Point had four players post double-digit kills led by Courtney Johnk (14), and four Panthers recorded over 10 digs, including conference digs leader Julie Hershkowitz (25). The Bulldogs benefitted from another dominating performance by Benorden, who registered 20 kills, a season-high 28 digs, and 3 blocks. It was her 16th double-double of the season. Lauren Ficker added 13 kills, Guinane supplied 45 assists and, not to be outdone, Miotto turned in a match-high 32 digs.
When the Big South’s weekly awards were announced today, it came as little surprise that Benorden was named Player of the Week and Miotto Defensive Player of the Week. Including Tuesday’s win at Gardner-Webb, the Bulldogs went 3-0 on the road against a very tough conference slate. Benorden posted 61 kills, a .306 hitting percentage, and 58 digs over the three match stretch. She eclipsed the 1,000 career kills/1,000 career digs milestone on Tuesday night and now ranks first in the Big South in kills with 4.12 per game and ninth in digs with 3.52 per game. Miotto tallied 72 total digs this week, along with 4 service aces. The senior from Brazil now ranks 5th on the NCAA all-time digs list, and is second in the Big South in digs this season with 5.05 per game. Ficker and Guinane were also standout performers this week. Ficker now leads the Big South in hitting percentage at .379. Guinane had 128 assists on the week, and improves to third in the conference in that category, averaging 10.63 per game.
The Bulldogs (23-8, 12-2) will defend their conference lead as they wrap up the regular season at the Justice Center this weekend. Asheville hosts fourth-place Coastal Carolina on Friday, followed by the season finale against third-place Winthrop on Saturday. UNC Asheville clinches the Big South regular season championship and the number one seed in the conference tournament with a victory in either match.
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