USC Aiken up first for Eagles in NCAA Tournament
November 18, 2014

USC Aiken up first for Eagles in NCAA Tournament

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – For the first time since the 2010 season, the Carson-Newman Eagles (26-6) are getting ready for a NCAA Tournament match. The USC Aiken Pacers (21-8) of the Peachbelt Conference are the Eagles first opponent with a scheduled first serve set for noon at Cuddy Arena.

VIDEO: Dan Ahiers Interview

Carson-Newman Volleyball Match Notes

Division II Volleyball Championship Guide

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – For the first time since the 2010 season, the Carson-Newman Eagles (26-6) are getting ready for a NCAA Tournament match. The USC Aiken Pacers (21-8) of the Peachbelt Conference are the Eagles first opponent with a scheduled first serve set for noon at Cuddy Arena.

Carson-Newman is 2-4 all-time in tournament play having won its first round match in each of its last two trips to the postseason. Both of those wins came against South Atlantic Conference opponents as the Eagles are 0-2 all-time against non-SAC foes.

"Yesterday we gave the girls scouting reports on USC Aiken," head coach Dan Ahiers said. "We know [Ashley Diedrich] is the conference's player of the year. She is a big rightside hitter. They set her a whole lot. If we can contain her, I think we got a really good shot of beating that team."

It has been a historic season in many regards for the Eagles as the 26 wins are the second-most in program history while the .813 winning percentage is just shy of the .816 posted by the 2002 team during a 31-7 campaign.

The Eagles have five All-SAC selections for the first time in 2009 and two first-team selections for the first time since 2005. Carson-Newman ranked second in the conference and 44th among Division II institutions with a .225 attack percentage.

Senior outside hitter Rachel Harper (Chattanooga, Tenn.) leads the way as her 4.4 points per set and 3.62 kills per set led the league this year while her 51 service aces rank fourth.

Senior middle blocker Jenna Wilson (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) has been one of the top middles in the country as her 3.9 points per set were fourth in the SAC while her 3.20 kills per set were fifth-best. Blocking has been her forte as her 134 total blocks led the SAC and rank 13th nationally and her 1.18 blocks per set are good for 21st in the country.

"They are very focused," Ahiers said. "Their focus, energy and leadership is spilling over into the younger kids and our whole team is ready to play."

USC Aiken and Carson-Newman have battled seven times prior to Thursday's meeting with the Pacers holding a 4-3 advantage. The last time the two teams tangled was on September 11, 2004 as the Eagles swept the Pacers at Holt Fieldhouse.

The Pacers have the Peachbelt's Player of the Year in junior opposite Ashley Diedrich who led her conference with four kills per set and 4.8 points per set. The two-time Peachbelt Player of the Week ranked 24th nationally in kills per set and 11th in points per set.

There is a steady drop off from Diedrich to her other teammates in terms of numbers as Diedrich tallied 1,000 attacks while the next closest Pacer, Taylor Stratton, piled up 684. Aly Johnson was third on the list with just 396 total attacks.

Second team All-Peachbelt selection Shelia Walsh was fourth in the conference with 10.06 assists per set aiding USC Aiken to a .217 attack percentage.

USC Aiken enters the match having lost back-to-back contests after it swept No. 20 Armstrong, the No. 2 seed in the Southeast region.

Wingate will provide a free online video stream by clicking here or check out live stats by clicking here. Follow @CNathletics on Twitter for the most current updates on Carson-Newman volleyball this weekend. 

NCAA Southeast Region Schedule

Thursday, Nov. 20 - at Cuddy Arena, Wingate University
12 p.m. - #3 USC Aiken vs. #6 Carson-Newman
2:30 p.m. - #2 Armstrong State vs. #7 Lenoir-Rhyne
5 p.m. - #4 GRU Augusta vs. #5 Anderson
7:30 p.m. - #1 Wingate vs. #8 Erskine

Friday, Nov. 21 - at Cuddy Arena, Wingate University 
5 p.m. - Match One Winner vs. Match Two Winner
7:30 p.m. - Match Three Winner vs. Match Four Winner

Saturday, Nov. 22 - at Cuddy Arena, Wingate University
5 p.m. - Region Championship Match

- CN -

Photos Photos Live stats Recap Box Score Box Score