Runnin' Bulldogs Run Past the S.C. State Bulldogs in Straight Sets, 3-0
October 02, 2013 | Volleyball
Orangeburg, S.C. - The Gardner-Webb volleyball team overcame a tight first set to run past the South Carolina State Bulldogs in straight sets 25-21, 25-17 and 25-16 in non-conference action on Tuesday night in Orangeburg, S.C.
The win propels GWU to 7-10 overall, while the loss drops the SCSU Bulldogs to 1-15 on the season.
The Runnin' Bulldogs offensively were led by seniors Erin Anderson and Emily Holte, who posted nine kills apiece on the night, while setter Heather Feldman totaled 26 set assists in the win. Defensively, Anderson had a match-high nine digs, while both Brianna Starr and Anna Pashkova recorded four digs apiece.
For S.C. State, outside hitter Desire Waller had a match-high 17 kills, as she hit .375 overall for the match, while setter Melanie Williams tallied 27 assists in the loss.
"It was a good road victory tonight. S.C. State fought hard in set one, but I was pleased at the poise of our players. We were able to settle down and get into our game plan," commented head coach Leo Sayles. "We distributed well tonight offensively and were able to keep S.C. State from running their offense with aggressive serving. They have a quality hitter in (Desire) Waller, but we focused on shutting down their other hitters and taking care of our side of the net. I'm pleased with the results tonight."
After an immediate service error put the Runnin' Bulldogs down 1-0 to start the opening set, GWU's Anderson recorded a spike to put the visitors in front by two at 7-5 early in the frame.
However, the Runnin' Bulldogs could not pull away from the Bulldogs, as Waller almost single-handedly kept the home team in the set, posting three kills over a six play span to tie the set up once more at 12-12.
After another Waller kill gave S.C. State the 13-12 lead, GWU was able to battle its way back in front as a kill from Starr and a S.C. State attack error put the score at 19-18 in favor of the Gardner-Webb.
Out of a Bulldogs timeout, GWU picked up an ace from Holte and then got kills from sophomores Tyra Montour and Devin Judge, as well as Anderson, to hold on for the 25-21 first set win.
The second set saw two early lead changes and three ties until a S.C. State attack error and a kill by Anderson pushed GWU in front by two at 5-3.
The Runnin' Bulldogs never looked back, as GWU pushed its lead out to 8-4 on an Amanda Murphy kill and then took a seven point lead at 19-12 on back-to-back kills from Murphy and Holte followed by a SCSU attack error.
Gardner-Webb pushed its lead out to as much as nine over the remainder of the set before taking the 25-17 set two win and a demanding 2-0 match lead.
The third set belonged to the visiting Runnin' Bulldogs from start to finish, as GWU took a 2-1 lead on a S.C. State attack error and ran out on an 8-2 run to take a 9-3 lead on kills from Holte and Starr.
After the home team tied the game up at 9-9 on a Waller kill and once more at 10-10 on another Waller kill, the Runnin' Bulldogs stuck to their game plan and answered with a 5-1 run to take a four point lead at 15-11 and force a S.C. State timeout.
The timeout did not slow down the Runnin' Bulldogs' momentum, as GWU finished the set out on a 10-5 run, which included service aces from both Feldman and Murphy, en route to the 25-16 set win and 3-0 match victory.
GWU, who totaled six service aces on the night, posted a .308 attack percentage as a team and also recorded a team serves percentage of .932 in the win.
Gardner-Webb (7-10, 0-1 Big South) will jump back into Big South Conference play this weekend, as the Runnin' Bulldogs will hit the road to take on Liberty on Friday night, October 4th, at 7 p.m. and will then turnaround to face off with Radford on Saturday, October 5th, at 4 p.m.
###
| Box Score: Gardner-Webb 3, S.C. State 0 |
