BOONE, N.C. -- Behind a double-double from
Emma Longley, Appalachian State volleyball swept past South Alabama 25-17, 25-23, 25-21 on Friday evening inside the Holmes Center.
Longley has now posted double-doubles in back-to-back contests for the first time this season and fifth time in her career. She tallied 18 kills, against just three errors, for a .395 hitting percentage, while adding a season-best 13 digs.
Victoria Wilform tallied nine kills and
Kara Spicer added eight kills with a .467 hitting mark.Â
Becky Porter dished out a match-high 31 assists, to go along with nine digs.
Emma Reilly also posted 13 digs for the Mountaineers (16-7, 8-3 SBC).
The opening set saw App State break a 4-4 tie with a kill from
Anna Kincaid and a service ace from Longley. The Mountaineers continued to pull away in the set and built a 19-12 lead on another service ace from Longley. A South Alabama (11-13, 5-6 SBC) attack error gave the Black and Gold the opening frame by a 25-17 count.
Set 2 was tight and featured six ties. With the score tied at 21-21, Appalachian got a kill and a block solo from Spicer to take a 23-21 advantage. The Jaguars came back with a point, but the Black and Gold got another point on a service error by South Alabama to take a 24-22 lead. Following another South Alabama point, Spicer finished off the set with a kill to give App State a 2-0 edge.
In the third set, the Mountaineers used a 5-0 run to take a 12-7 lead. The Jaguars trimmed the Mountaineer lead to 15-14, before five consecutive Black and Gold points pushed its lead back to 20-15. Clinging to a 24-21 edge,
Grace Morrison finished off the sweep with a kill.
App State hit .198 in the contest, registering 42 kills against just 19 errors. The Mountaineers also had six service aces.
Appalachian State, who sits in first place in the Sun Belt East, will continue its four match home stand on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. against Troy.
