STATESBORO, GA – Erasing a slow start in the opening set, the Georgia Southern volleyball team governed the final two sets to overpower Wofford Saturday, 3-0 (28-26, 25-22, 25-16), in Hanner Fieldhouse. The Eagles struck an impressive .356 from the floor on behalf of sophomore Bethany Sanford’s match-high 14 kills. With the Southern Conference win, Georgia Southern took its overall record to 18-9 and league mark to 8-4. Wofford fell to 17-11, 4-8.
“It was nice to see the way the team rebounded from last night’s performance. I know we were a little down after that, but it was good to see the team respond well on the court tonight,” said head coach Chad Callihan. “There are some things I think we can still do better, but overall it was a good match.”
The Eagles got off to a sluggish start, but backed by Sanford, who led the team in kills in two of the three sets, Georgia Southern maintained control of the Terriers. Wofford opened the match holding the lead until a Sanford kill, followed by a Terrier error, knotted the opening set at 11-all. The Terriers retained possession of the lead until consecutive kills from Sanford and Parker Small (Charlotte, N.C.) gave the Eagles their first edge of the night, 18-17. Tied at 21-apiece, the Terriers found set-point off a 3-0 run, but a 3-0 run of their own put the Eagles back within striking distance at 24-all. The conference foes traded set-points until Arden Anderson tied the set at 26-26. Sanford put Georgia Southern on top as Small fired her fourth kill of the set to secure the win, 28-26.
Jumping out to a quick lead in the second set, Georgia Southern held a 6-2 advantage before a pair of Danielle Graham (Cincinnati, Ohio) kills improved the lead, 8-2. A Shanna Hughes kill pushed the Terriers to within one point at 17-16, but Georgia Southern retaliated and took a commanding 2-0 lead into the intermission with a 25-22 second set victory.
It was behind strong serving from freshman Ashleigh Wienbarg (Monroe, Ga.) that the Eagles closed out the final third set. Encompassing 10 ties and four lead changes, the teams found themselves in a standstill at 15-all before Claybaugh earned the side out for the Eagles, putting Wienbarg at the helm of the court. Behind the freshman’s serving, the Eagles put together an 8-1 run, setting the stage for the Eagles at 23-16. Claybaugh fired her fourth kill of the set to give Georgia Southern match point as Graham closed out the conference victory for the Eagles, 25-16, with her 11th kill of the match.
Sanford finished with 14 kills and seven digs, while Graham and Small added 11 and 10 kills, respectively. The Eagles’ defense was paced behind senior libero Cristin Haines’ (Palos Heights, Ill.) 18 defensive saves. Freshman setter Kate Van Dyke (Shawnee, Kan.) recorded 38 assists to go along with 10 digs.
Hughes added seven digs to 10 kills to lead the Terriers. With 27 assists, setter Joanna Suddath led the offense, while Sarah Palmer posted nine digs.
The Eagles have a week to prepare before hitting the road for a pair on conference matches this weekend. “I think our defense can be stronger than it has been the past couple of matches, so this week we will spend a lot of time working on our blocks and defense to see if we can get that to where we want it to be,” said Callihan.
Georgia Southern returns to the court traveling to College of Charleston on Friday, November 6. Match time in Charleston is slated for 7 p.m.
