HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – After starting their day with their fourth straight three-set sweep in a contest against Trevecca Nazarene, the Anderson University Trojans volleyball team dropped a marathon five-set affair with the homestanding Alabama Hunstville Chargers to move to 6-1 on the season.
"I was pretty pleased with today's overall play although there were some moments we could have definitely been better," said head coach Todd Hay.
Match One: Anderson 3, Trevecca Nazarene 0
The Trojans were led in the opening contest of the day by senior Sadie Kluner (Venice, Fla.) who recorded 10 kills in the match with a .381 hitting percentage. Senior Jenna Long (Clearwater, Fla.) chipped in 28 assists in the contest with a trio of other Trojans nothing 5 kills.
"Our first match was fairly consistent throughout and we never had a real drop off in all three sets against a balanced TNU squad," added Hay.
Anderson jumped out to the early lead in the contest and was able to string together a four-point streak after TNU was able to score their second point of the opening set to take the 8-2 advantage. TNU was able to climb back into the contest with just a four-point deficit at 14-10, but Anderson was able to retake the lead by an 18-13 margin late in the set. The Trojans were able to put together four two-point strings to close out the set by a final score of 25-19.
A tightly contested second set found the two teams tied up at 6-6 and 9-9 with each team taking the lead throughout that span. However, it was the Trojans that took control of the set with a pair of five-point rallies to pull ahead for good and wrap up the second set by a score of 25-15.
The third set saw TNU take their largest lead of the match, jumping out to an early 4-2 lead. Six separate ties over the next handful of points saw the two teams notched up a ten each with TNU taking over the momentum for the next four points, giving them the 14-10 lead. Anderson was able to battle back, tying up the contest at 16 and 20. Anderson was able to outscore TNU by a 5-2 margin over the final seven points to secure the sweep with a 25-22 win.
Match Two: UAH 3, Anderson 2
Long was able to tie the fifteenth highest assist total in a contest with 59, matching Lindsay Doggett's performance against Armstrong Atlantic in 2007. Kluner again led the Trojans with 19 kills in the match with senior Rylie Sargent (Greer, S.C.) slated right behind her with 18 kills of her own. Senior Tabitha Wheeler (Greenville, S.C.) posted 15 kills while sophomore Savannah Cox (Simpsonville, S.C.) led the squad with 28 digs.
"The team really battled back after a woeful start to set four and was able to extend it to five, giving ourselves a chance. They never stopped believing they could win and it showed."
After scoring the first point of the match, the Trojans found themselves trailing by a 4-1 margin before scoring their next point. UAH extended their lead over the Trojans to 10-8 then further to 14-10 before Anderson begun to chip away at that advantage bringing it to just a one-point separation at 17-16. That single point separation stood intact until the Trojans were able to tie the match up at 21. Anderson rattled off four of the next six points of the opening set to take the decision, 25-23.
The Trojans were able to flip the narrative on its head in the second set, taking the early 5-1 advantage. They were able to further boost their lead with some timely kills from their front row, further extending their lead to 12-7. That five-point advantage would stay intact until the Chargers were able to put together four straight points to cut the Trojans lead to 20-18. The narrative continued to trend the opposite direction as the first with UAH able to secure a late tie, forcing extra points with the Chargers eventually taking the 28-26 win.
The two teams traded points back and forth in the early goings of the third set while the teams were able to tie up the score at 8, 12, 14 and 16. That 16th point for the Chargers was the start of a five-point run that allowed them to extend their advantage to 20-16. Anderson pulled back to within one point at 20-19 but the Chargers outscored the Trojans 5-3 over the final stretch taking the two-set lead.
The fourth set started with the teams trading points back and forth before the Chargers were able to put together a four-point run to take the 13-8 advantage. However, the Trojans turned on the offensive attack over the next stretch as they were able to outscore the Chargers 10-2 over the next 12 points to take the 18-15 advantage. The Chargers crawled back into the contest, tying the match at 23 but even though it took an extra point, the Trojans were able to force the fifth set with a 26-24 win.
In the decisive set the teams tied it up early at 3-3 before continuing to trade points before UAH forced the side switch at 8-6. The Trojans took control of the match after the switch as they were able to string together five straight points, taking the 12-9 advantage. Anderson reached match point at 14-11, but UAH did not go quietly, tying up the contest on multiple occasions throughout the set, reaching 19-19. Two strong kills by the Chargers would bring the final set to a close at 21-19 in favor of the Chargers, giving them the 3-2 victory.
"It is so good to have these types of matches early on in the year and learn so much about the team. We look forward to another day of tough opponents tomorrow."
The Trojans return to action tomorrow as they continue action at the UAH Charger Invitational with matches against Montevallo and Barry.
