Wednesday, October 7, 2009
{The Blue Banner}
Page 15
Bulldogs win nail-biter against Charleston Southern
By Phillip Amos
Staff Writer
PMAMOS@UNCA.EDU
The UNC Asheville volleyball
team extended their winning streak to
three games with a close victory over
Charleston Southern, winning the
tiebreaker, 15-13.
“The positive aspect of the match
Was the aggressive blocking by Jenna
i^over and the ability of our team to
fight back from an 8-4 deficit in the
fifth set after letting a 22-17 lead slip
in the fourth set,” Head Coach Julie
Torbett said. “Some teams would fold
in those circumstances and this team
didn’t. We just didn’t execute as well
ns We can so we opened the door for
them.”
Torbett said the Bulldogs are still
pot playing at 100 percent, and with
injured players and a busy schedule,
ifiey have to stay in top shape.
“We hope to be 100 percent by
November or late October, but it is a
day-to-day process with our team this
season,” she said. “It will take a lot
of Work on the injured players’ part
With rehab exercises, as well as extra
oonditioning to be in peak shape by
the tournament.”
The Bulldogs almost let the win
slip through their fingers as CSU
forced them into a fifth set. Torbett
Said the team’s lack of execution
almost cost them the game.
“We missed serves when their best
player was in the back row and we
didn’t block well, even though they
°nly had two offensive weapons,” she
said. “Our sets were too far outside to
ohannel the ball down the line, so we
fiolped CSU have their best defensive
performance of the season as well
as two personal career highs offen
sively;”
The victory over CSU keeps the
Bulldogs undefeated in conference
play, but with back-to-back confer
ence games on Friday and Saturday,
junior hitter Jenna Dover said there is
still no room for error.
“The game Friday was a nice win
fiat our program. Beating teams like
f-harleston Southern will keep us in
the top half of our conference,” she
Said. “We are currently 3-0 in confer
ence play, but we have three matches
this week. This is no time for a slip
up in our play.”
Kelsey Benorden agreed with
Dover and said the team’s ability to
pull out close victories adds to the
confidence and energy the team used
all season to stay strong.
“We go into each match believing
we can win,” Benorden said. “Ev
eryone really came together against
Charleston Southern and you could
tell we were not going to lose by the
look in our eyes.”
The Bulldogs came back after be
ing down early in the match, losing
the first set 25-27. Dover said lineup
adjustments prevented the team fi'om
starting strong.
“It’s been weeks since we have
played in our original lineup so the
Emily Kerr - Contributing Photographer
The Bulldogs huddle together before the third set against CSU. Left,
Lauren Picker looks to spike the ball In the fourth set.
‘We have three matches this week.
This is no time for a slip-up in our play. ”
- Jenna Dover
sets were a little up and down before
we got comfortable,” she said.
The match came down to a battle
of skill as UNCA was unable to hold
on to their fourth set lead and CSU
forced the game to a tiebreaker.
The Bucs quickly racked up a four-
point lead. Dover said the Bulldogs
remained unshaken and used their
experience to overcome the deficit.
“The girls fi'om Charleston South
ern were smiling at their four-point
lead in the fifth set. They thought the
match was over, but our team man
ages to find a way to win even when
we are down,” she said. “We’re very
experienced in five set matches.”
Benorden, the team’s outside hitter,
returned Friday night after battling
an ankle injury that caused her to
miss the last 10 games. She made her
return known when she finished the
match with two straight kills to win
the game.
It was a special game for seniors
Lauren Ficker and Raquel Miotto,
who added their names to the NCAA
record books.
Middle blocker Ficker recorded her
1,000th career kill at the match, put
ting her at 1,005 career kills. Liberos
Miotto moved into 10th place on the
NCAA all-time career list with 2,345
career digs.
“We had a lot of ups and downs
against Charleston Southern. We
should have won in four games,” Mi
otto said. “Now that Benorden is back
we are in better health than we were.
We still have some players that are
not 100 percent, but they are getting
there.”