Senior day for Schultz part of season finale for volleyball
November 13, 2013

Senior day for Schultz part of season finale for volleyball

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – This weekend marks the final time that senior right side Emily Schultz (Atlanta, Ga.) will suit up for the Carson-Newman Eagles (11-16, 6-14 South Atlantic Conference) as the team gets set to play the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (15-9, 12-8 SAC) and the Brevard Tornados (7-18, 3-17 SAC).

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – This weekend marks the final time that senior right side Emily Schultz (Atlanta, Ga.) will suit up for the Carson-Newman Eagles (11-16, 6-14 South Atlantic Conference) as the team gets set to play the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (15-9, 12-8 SAC) and the Brevard Tornados (7-18, 3-17 SAC).

"Every moment of every play, I just take to heart," Schultz said about her experience at Carson-Newman. "I have so much passion for this game and I love the sport. It's really tearing me apart to know that I'm coming up on my last weekend. I'm just really trying to take everything and use everything to my benefit and to the benefit of my team."

After transferring from the College of Charleston, Schultz has been consistently in the lineup for the Eagles. As a junior, the Atlanta, Ga. native saw action in all 26 matches with 1.51 kills per set on a .197 attack percentage. She has improved on those numbers this season with 2.08 kills per set and averaging 0.48 blocks per frame. Schultz has double-digit kills in nine matches this season including a pair of 15 kill matches.

"Emily's gone through a maturing process," head coach Shannon Mincey said about her lone senior. "I hope that I've had a little hand in her molding. I will certainly hope that my team will play for her. Emily's going to enjoy this weekend. She isn't going to want to take her jersey off."

After falling in five sets Tuesday night against Lincoln Memorial, the Eagles will try to conclude the season on a winning streak beginning with Lenoir-Rhyne Friday night at 7 p.m. The first meeting between the two clubs saw the Bears win in four sets as they hit .305 in the match.

Schultz and junior outside hitter Rachel Harper (Chattanooga, Tenn.) each piled up 11 kills while junior setter Kristen Pickett (Cleveland, Tenn.) finished with 38 assists and 11 digs.

Having won their last two matches, the Bears are led by junior outside hitter Haley Rhyne. The Statesville, N.C. native is tied with Harper for fourth in the conference with 3.57 kills per set on a total of 332 kills. Sophomore setter Briana Gottberg is second in the league averaging 10.29 assists per set putting her 44th in the nation.

Carson-Newman concludes its season with a noon first serve against Brevard Saturday afternoon with senior day festivities. The Eagles topped the Tornados in straight sets the first time they met on October 12. Mincey's group hit .440 in the contest with nine different players notching at least one kill.

Having lost six of its last seven matches, Brevard is 11th in the league with a .153 hitting percentage and an average of 1.01 blocks per set. Senior middle Erin Rollins leads her team with 2.74 kills per set on a .287 attack percentage.

"They won't believe how fast it goes," Schultz said of what she will tell her teammates. "You blink and you've gone through four years and you will never play competitively again. I just encourage them to take every practice seriously and every game seriously. Don't accept losses and demand perfection out of themselves."

Both games are available with a high definition video stream by visiting cneagles.com/live for the live broadcast.

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