SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Gardner-Webb volleyball team wrapped up its long stretch on the road on Saturday at the Wofford Invitational, defeating The Citadel 3-1 in the morning before a 3-1 late afternoon loss to Marshall

GARDNER-WEBB 3, THE CITADEL 1
Gardner-Webb was red hot out of the gate on Saturday morning, racing away with a 25-10 win in the opening set against The Citadel. The Runnin' Bulldogs quickly led 4-0 and never trailed en route to the biggest set win by margin for the team this season.

Several Runnin' Bulldogs were key early on, including redshirt freshman right side Alexis Maesch who set the tone with a handful of kills after making the starting lineup, and freshman outside hitter Haedyn Crumbley who contributed both early and late in the set.

The Citadel battled back for a win in the second set, before Gardner-Webb closed with a 25-21 win in the third and a dramatic come from behind 25-22 win in the fourth. The third set was nip-and-tuck all the way through with kills by Crumbley and sophomore outside hitter Samia Sayd closing out a late 5-2 run, but it would have nothing on the fourth set.

In the fourth, GWU found itself staring down a 17-9 hole. Four straight points, including three Citadel errors, allowed the Dawgs back in the contest before a 9-1 scoring run finished the job not long after. Freshman right side Sarina Galyean was huge for Gardner-Webb down the stretch after checking into the match in the third set, with four of the nine points, including the match-clinching kill

LEADERS
Crumbley finished with a team-high nine kills, while Sayd finished with eight, and Kohler and Galyean recorded seven each. Sophomore setter Olivia Lefebvre and redshirt junior setter Sloane Rooney again posted 20-assist games, with 22 and 20 respectively, while defensively, junior middle Milla Lugo had five block assists and graduate libero Nalani McBride was scored with 25 digs

MARSHALL 3, GARDNER-WEBB 1
Gardner-Webb and Marshall would play a bit of a marathon late on Saturday afternoon, with Marshall taking the first set 27-25 and the second 25-15, Gardner-Webb battled back for a wild 25-22 win in the third before the Thundering Herd closed out a 25-18 win in the fourth

Once again, the Dawgs began brilliantly with a 12-6 lead in set one. Sophomore outside hitter Isabel Sandstrum was key early, with a pair of early kills during the Runnin' Bulldogs hot start. Kills by Crumbley and Galyean brought GWU to set point before Marshall stole four of the last five points

Down 2-0 in the match, Gardner-Webb needed a rally and found one deep into the third set. Down 20-16, the Runnin' Bulldogs found a 9-2 run to get off the mat. Five consecutive errors on the Thundering Herd tied the set at 21, before GWU was able to turn to Sandstrum and Galyean to finish off the 25-22 comeback

Gardner-Webb would be forced to climb out of a hole again in the fourth, down as many as nine late, with a 23-14 lead by Marshall. This time, the Runnin' Bulldogs wouldn't be able to turn it around despite a handful of late points, and Marshall closed out a 3-1 win in the match

LEADERS
Crumbley again led for the Runnin' Bulldogs with 13 kills, while Galyean followed up a strong first game with a career-high 12 kills. Rooney was also excellent again tallying 27 assists, while McBride finished one shy of her season high, finishing with 29 digs alongside Crumbley and Sandstrum who each had 15

FROM COACH HINSEY
This match (versus The Citadel) was a roller coaster, coming out and winning the first set 25-10, battling back in set three and even set four. One thing that we've said, good things happen when you have positive energy and you play with a sense of focus, and we never gave up and fought super hard for every point. We've done that multiple times this year as you know, where we've climbed out of big holes to come away with wins

UP NEXT
The Runnin' Bulldogs are finally home on Tuesday night, September 23rd, hosting Queens inside Paul Porter Arena in the team's 2025 home opener