HARROGATE, Tenn. – In one of their final tune-ups prior to the South Atlantic Conference tournament in just over a week, the Anderson University (23-4, 15-2 SAC) volleyball team took a 3-0 sweep from Lincoln Memorial on the road on Friday, November 3.
"Happy to pick up the win on the road and battle a little adversity at the ame time," said head coach Todd Hay. "Our team, like many others, tends to pick up a little sickness this time of year and were weren't at 100%. However, we were able to do just enough to secure the win."
Anderson was led in the contest by a pair of hitters as senior Jaelyn Grimm (Cedar Park, Texas) and sophomore Kaitlyn Barrett (Inman, S.C.) we each able to record 11 kills, with Grimm having the higher hitting percentage at .409. Graduate Lindsay McCurley (Simpsonville, S.C.) recorded 12 digs to lead the squad while also recording a pair of service aces. Senior Jenna Long (Clearwater, Fla.) tallied nine digs in the contest as well as 32 assists.
"Kaitlyn and Jaelyn had strong nights offensively and out service game came up big at some key times. We will now take a couple days off and prepare for senior night and the post-season run. Hope to see everyone in a week in the Abney."
Falling behind by four points in the opening of the first set, Anderon had a ladder to climb early in the match. However, the Trojans were able to work through their offense to bring the match to just two points at 10-8. The first of three multi-point runs for the Trojans, this one for five points, swung the advantage onto the Anderson side of the net at 13-10. A three-point and six-point run further extended out the Anderson lead to 22-14, and the Trojans were able to take care of business the rest of the way through the set, taking it 25-19.
A back-and-forth affair was in the works for the opening of the second set as the two teams were able to trade points, locking up at 5-5. A short run by the Railsplitters game them the 8-5 lead in the set, but Anderson continued to chip away at their lead, eventually taking it over at 11-10. Though LMU was able to take back the lead by as much as two over the closing stretch, a four-point run for the Black and Gold at 20-19 put the set out of reach as they took the second, 25-21.
The third set returned to a commanding early advantage for the Trojans as they took the early 5-2 lead before further extending their margin to seven at 11-4. The Trojans continued to put together multiple point runs as a three-point and four-point run saw their lead stretch out to as many as 10 at 20-10. Lincoln Memorial tried to make a run at the end of the third set, outscoring the Trojans 7-5 over the final points, but it wasn't enough as Anderson took the third set and the match, 25-17.
The Trojans will welcome Carson-Newman for their final regular season match-up at home on Friday, November 10. Prior to the game's 7:00 p.m. first serve, the volleyball team will recognize their seniors for their accomplishments while at AU.
