BOONE N.C. – The App State volleyball team shutout Presbyterian, 3-0, in the final match of the Mountaineer Classic on Saturday. The Mountaineers went undefeated in their home tournament and are now 6-3 on the season.
"What a great weekend" said head coach
Sarah Rumely Noble. "Getting three wins on our home court this weekend was awesome and we really felt the fans helping push us through the weekend. I'm proud of our effort. We got a lot better and we look forward to our last week of non-conference play next week."
Sophomore
Lulu Ambrose and senior
McCall Denny earned spots on the Mountaineer Classic All-Tournament Team. Freshman
Maya Winterhoff, who had been named to both the CSU and Wofford Tournament teams earlier this season, was named the Mountaineer Classic MVP for her efforts on the court.
App State 3, Presbyterian 0
Ambrose led the Mountaineers in kills (8), while freshman
Kenady Roper led the team in aces (3) and digs (12). Senior
Sam Bickley posted a team-high 14 assists, while junior
Lauren Pledger and Winterhoff posted three blocks each.
App State outpaced Presbyterian in five of six team categories, most notably in aces (10-2) and blocks (6-1).
Early in the first set, the Mountaineers and Blue Hose kept pace with each other before App State distanced itself with a three-point run with two kills and an ace from Denny. The Black and Gold caught momentum with a 6-0 run that included kills from junior
Meghan Dombrowski and Ambrose, as well as two aces from Roper, to make the score 15-7, in App State's favor. Maintaining a steady lead with a late 4-0 run, the Mountaineers took the first set, 25-19.
The Mountaineers jumped to another early lead in the second set, breaking from a 3-3 tie with six unanswered points. Presbyterian struggled to catch up and came within four of the Mountaineers, pushing the score to 14-10. In response, the Mountaineers went on an impressive 7-0 run with a pair of aces from Bickley, kills from Dombrowski and Denny, and errors from the Blue Hose to extend their lead to 21-10. App State capped the second set, 25-13, with a kill from Ambrose.
App State came out strong early in the third set, leading the Blue Hose, 5-2, before Presbyterian caught up and cut App State's lead to one with a score of 8-7. The Mountaineers distanced themselves with kills from Dombrowski and Ambrose and an ace from junior
Sophie Cain to make the score 11-7. Maintaining a steady lead, the Black and Gold went on a decisive four-point run late in the set that included a pair of kills from Winterhoff, an ace from junior
Cierra Huntley, and a block from Winterhoff and Denny, to put App State ahead, 24-16. Junior
Madison Baldridge slammed down a final kill to secure the set (25-17) and the match (3-0).
Up Next
The Mountaineers will head to Blacksburg, Va. for the Hokie Classic, hosted by Virginia Tech on Sept. 15-16. App State will clash with Western Carolina on Sept. 15 at 3 p.m. before taking on either Virginia Tech or Norfolk State on Sept. 16.
All-Tournament Team
Lulu Ambrose, App State
McCall Denny, App State
Andrea Aceveda, Furman
Lauren Haynes, Furman
Taryn Cast, Texas A&M - Commerce
Kinsey Bailey, Presbyterian
Mountaineer Classic MVP: Maya Winterhoff, App State
Final Mountaineer Classic Tournament Standings (with W/L records from the tournament)
1. App State (3-0)
2. Furman (2-1)
3. Texas A&M - Commerce (1-2)
4. Presbyterian (0-3)
