MARS HILL, N.C. – Junior Marissa Mitter and freshman Kathryn Hughes each posted a match-high 15 kills to lift the Anderson volleyball team to a 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-20, 25-23) South Atlantic Conference win over Mars Hill in its final regular-season road contest, Saturday afternoon at Stanford Arena.
Anderson (17-11, 13-7 SAC) has won four straight and eight of its last 10 outings, while earning a split of the season series with the Lions. Mars Hill (7-120, 6-14 SAC) has dropped five of its last six decisions.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Mitter added 18 digs for her 17th double-double of the season, while Hughes' 15 kills marked a career-high for the Chapin, S.C. native. Senior Allison Gaminde and Rachel Burts also tallied seven kills apiece, with Burts tallying four block assists. Freshman Emily Conlin handed out 49 assists and came up with 17 digs for her 16th double-double of the campaign. Sophomore Jayln Knight collected 10 digs, with sophomore Emily Conard recording a season-high 38 digs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
A late run was not enough to offset Mars Hill's hot hand early.
The opening frame featured five early ties before the Lions used a 9-3 run to turn a 5-3 Trojan lead into a four-point Mars Hill advantage on the strength of a .364 hitting percentage. The Lions continued their hot hitting and extended their lead to six points on three occasions before claiming a seven-point (20-13) cushion.
Following an AU timeout, the Trojans rattled off a 5-1 run to climb within three at 21-18, and closed within 24-22 on a kill from Kathryn Hughes. Facing set point, Hughes and Serena Jackson combined on a block to get AU within 24-23 but it was as close as AU would get, as the Lions claimed the narrow win.
Second Set
The Trojans flipped the momentum by scoring the first three points of the second frame and building an 11-5 advantage. AU never trailed and went on to claim a double-digit 18-8 cushion on Hughes' sixth kill of the afternoon. After a timeout Mars Hill reeled off a 5-1 run, but would get no closer than six, as the Trojans finished the set with a 6-3 surge for the nine-point victory.
Third Set
Back-to-back kills from Hughes propelled the Trojans to an early 6-2 advantage and the Black and Gold edged out to a 10-5 lead before Mars Hill knotted the score at 14 apiece. The Lions briefly took their first lead of the set, at 16-15, but AU answered quickly to even the score at 16-16. A service ace from Jayln Knight and a block assist from Conlin and Burts boosted the Trojans lead to 18-16 and a 7-4 run sealed the win.
Fourth Set
The Trojans fell behind 6-2 early, but chipped away to even the score at seven apiece on Conlin's fourth kill of the afternoon. The set was tied seven times before AU capitalized on a Mars Hill attack error to claim a 15-14 edge and Serena Jackson's second kill of the day boosted the Trojans' lead to 16-14. The frame featured four more ties, with neither team able to build more than a two-point lead before Gaminde and Jackson knocked down back-to-back kills to snap a 23-23 deadlock.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE NIGHT
The Trojans are the fourth AU squad to reach at least 17 victories since joining the SAC in 2010.
NOTABLES
• Conlin has recorded eight consecutive double-doubles and has 16 on the season.
• Conlin has posted at least 30 assists in 23 matches this season and has reached the 40+ assist plateau on 13 occasions.
• Conlin has moved into eighth place in the school record books for assists in a single season with 1,113 and trails former Trojan standout Meghan Cautero (2013) by six assists for the seventh spot.
• Conard has recorded double-figure digs in 26 matches this season, including seven straight and 21 of the Trojans' last 22 outings.
• Mitter has recorded 17 double-doubles this season.
• Mitter has reached double-figure kills on 21 occasions, including each of the last six outings.
• Rachel Burts has recorded double-figure kills in 11 matches this season, including 10 of the last 14.
• Burts needs one total block to move into the school's top-10 for blocks in a single season and with her four block assists on the day, she has 81 on the season and surpassed teammate Jessica Harris (2013) for fourth place. She trails Tiffany Rowe (2012) by one block assist for third place in the school record books.
UP NEXT
Anderson returns to the Abney Athletic Center for its final two-match regular-season homestand next weekend. The Trojans play host to Catawba, Friday at 7 p.m. and will recognize seniors Allison Gaminde and Jessica Harris prior to Saturday's 2 p.m. matchup with Queens.
