Women's Volleyball charges past Charleston in straight sets

SALISBURY, N.C. – The Catawba College women's volleyball team rolled past the University of Charleston with a 3-0 sweep at Goodman Arena on Saturday afternoon.

TEAM STATS

- The Catawba Indians (3-10, 1-5 SAC) posted their second-best hitting percentage of the year with a .194 clip while Charleston (13-6, 3-2 MEC) put up a woeful .019 mark

- The blue and white were superior in setting, holding a 32-28 lead in assists and a .308-.250 percentage gap

- Both teams tallied six blocks as Catawba committed just one blocking error compared to Charleston's two

- The Golden Eagles notched better marks in service aces (8-4), digs (46-42), and reception percentage (.938-.862)

INDIVIDUAL STATS

- Lillie Kate Rogers flirted with a double-double in an 11-kill, nine-dig performance

- Lauren Bodell and Sydney Wattles finished with hitting percentages north of .400, tacking on five kills apiece on 12 and nine swings, respectively

- Both Catawba setters had double-figure dig totals as Haley Moffett led the way with 15 and Sydney McCutcheon dished out 10 while tallying two aces

- After Rogers' nine digs were McCutcheon, Kary Hales, and Riley Hill who all recorded eight

- Wattles was tabbed with a team-high four blocks – all assists – as Bodell made a season-high three stops; the pair teamed up for three blocks

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Set

- Catawba used an all-around effort to hang with the Golden Eagle offense led by Pia Selke and Patrycja Majos, keeping the score nearly knotted until 12-12

- The equalizing ace from Hill preceded back-to-back Charleston attack errors and a Wattles strike, spurring a timeout from the visitors

- Rogers and Kelcie Love dropped in kills around a service-breaking block by Wattles and Bodell

- After a timeout at 21-16, the Golden Eagles failed to regroup as they gifted two points via error which opened the door for Jordan Danielson and Rogers kills to end the set at 25-19

Second Set

- The hosts started the second stanza red-hot beginning with a solo block by Katie Clark

- Golden Eagle miscues as well as two kills apiece from Danielson and Rogers stretched the run to 9-1, but the error bug bit Catawba who surrendered the eight-point lead to make it 9-9

- Bodell slammed in a pair of points but the blue and white failed to break away until off-target Charleston swings put the visitors into another deficit

- Majos gave the Golden Eagles a fighting chance with three blasts in the late rallies, but Catawba's hitting prowess locked up a 25-22 set triumph and a 2-0 advantage

Third Set

- After 2-2, the Catawba Indians went on another tear featuring kills by Bodell and Rogers as well as a crowd-rocking Wattles-Bodell stop at the net

- Charleston gradually got back into the match as Riley Hoff emerged as a key piece with timely kills

- Hoff and Emma Shepherd found command of their attacks, each logging consecutive blasts as Catawba opted for a timeout at 19-18

- Dueling aces by Hoff and Moffett were surrounded by errors on both ends, but Catawba committed fewer in crunch time to finalize the sweep

UP NEXT

Catawba is back at Goodman Arena on Tuesday, Oct. 15 for a rematch with the Wingate Bulldogs at 7 p.m.