BOONE, N.C.- Appalachian State University volleyball came out on fire and grabbed a commanding 3-1 victory over SoCon South division foe College of Charleston Saturday afternoon. It was the Apps first win over the Cougars since October 27, 2007 when the Mountaineers won by the same margin. With the victory, the Black and Gold snap a two-match losing streak and improve to 10-15 overall and 6-5 in league play, while C of C drops to 12-11 on the season and 8-3 in the SoCon. In addition to notching the impressive win, ASU also raised 3500 dollars for the fight against breast cancer in their Dig Pink event.
Appalachian came out strong in first set action and never looked back, as the Mountaineers cruised to a 25-17 first set victory. ASU's narrowest margin of lead was at 10-8, but kills by Caroline Sedon, Lauren Swecker and Maggie Seeds, helped ASU take a commanding 16-10 advantage, on a 6-0 run. The Apps stout play continued, as points by Kelsey Kuehner and Becca Norris helped ASU keep its lead at the 20-15 mark.
A block assist by Sedon and Seeds and a two final kills by Swecker enabled the Black and Gold to cruise to the first set win.
The second set was not as kind to the Mountaineers who struggled to find any rhythm early on, finding themselves in a 12-4 hole. Whitney Russell paced the Cougar attack, as she accounted for three of C of C's early points and teammates Emily Sawin and Elyse Chubb chipped in offensively as well.
An 11-3 Appalachian streak, knotted the set at 15 all, with points by Swecker, Kuehner and Sedon helping ASU to stay alive, but it was all College of Charleston from there on out.
A block assist by Elyse Chubb and Ginny Phillips and two more points by Phillips put the Cougars up 20-16. The Cougars would not relinquish their advantage, taking a 25-18 second set win, to tie the match at one apiece.
Third set action was tied at the final time at the five all mark as ASU led the rest of the way. Appalachian grabbed a 18-13 lead, with points coming from all over from the Mountaineer squad, as Kasey Sauls, Swecker and Seeds all paced ASU offensively.
Three kills by Norris in the waning points of the set helped the Apps regain their momentum and capture the thrilling 25-20 third set victory to take a 2-1 set advantage.
The Mountaineers carried their momentum into the fourth set, as two solo blocks by Seeds and kills by Kuehner and Norris gave the Apps a 14-4 lead. C of C tried to muster a comeback, cutting their deficit to just six points at the 15-9 mark. However, ASU would not let down, as Seeds, Norris and Sedon all continued with their solid play to put ASU up 20-12 and give Appalachian the eventual resounding 25-17 fourth set and 3-1 match win.
Offensively, sophomore Maggie Seeds tied a career and match-high with 16 kills, while Lauren Swecker posted a season-best 13 kills. Seeds also tallied a career-best two block solos on the afternoon.
Appalachian continues with its 2009 campaign, as the Apps hit the road for a three match road swing, beginning November 4 at Western Carolina.
