Eagles fall short of deepest NCAA run with loss to Pirates
November 21, 2014

Eagles fall short of deepest NCAA run with loss to Pirates

WINGATE, N.C. – The sixth-seeded Carson-Newman Eagles (27-7) lost 21-25, 22-25 and 14-25 to the No. 2 seed Armstrong Pirates (30-2) in the Southeast Region semifinal Friday evening at Cuddy Arena. It marks the third time in program history that the Eagles have made it to the Regional semifinals as one of the top 32 teams in the nation.

VIDEO: Dan Ahiers Postgame Press Conference

WINGATE, N.C. – The sixth-seeded Carson-Newman Eagles (27-7) lost 21-25, 22-25 and 14-25 to the No. 2 seed Armstrong Pirates (30-2) in the Southeast Region semifinal Friday evening at Cuddy Arena. It marks the third time in program history that the Eagles have made it to the Regional semifinals as one of the top 32 teams in the nation.

"Armstrong is a big, strong, physical team," head coach Dan Ahiers said. "I'm super impressed at how well they played tonight."

The intensity of the first back bounced back-and-forth as the two sides traded deafening cheers. In a set that featured five ties and two lead changes, a 6-1 spurt gave the No. 2 seed an 11-7 lead. Carson-Newman used a 4-0 run to tie the score at 11 before a 7-2 run gave the Pirates their largest lead of the set at 18-13. The Eagles pulled within three points on multiple occasions, but Armstrong took the first set 25-21 as it hit .297. Senior outside hitter Rachel Harper (Chattanooga, Tenn.) had six kills.

Armstrong had the lead most of the second stanza using a 9-3 run to take a 10-5 lead. Carson-Newman pulled within two points, but the Pirates used a 5-0 spurt to regain control at 17-10. The 21st-ranked team in the country had a 24-18 lead and the Eagles won four straight points, but couldn't get a fifth as the Pirates took the set 25-22. Senior setter Kristen Pickett (Cleveland, Tenn.) had nine assists.

The Pirates raced out to a 15-5 lead in the third set as Ahiers used both of his timeouts. The Eagles settled down but could not make enough of run to get back into the match as six points would be the closest Carson-Newman got the rest of the set.

Harper was the lone player in the match to record double-digit kills as she finished 10 kills, seven digs, three service aces and two total blocks. Her 3.66 kills per set for the season are the fifth-highest total in program history while her 58 service aces are the third-most by a Carson-Newman player.

Pickett had 24 assists and nine digs while fellow seniors Jenna Wilson (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) and Lauren Santarelli (Colorado Springs, Colo.) had five and six kills respectively.

Pickett finished the year with 1,268 assists, the fifth-highest total in school history while her 58 service aces matched Harper for the third-most in a single season. Her 10.39 assists per set are the fifth-most in a single season.

Wilson's .387 attack percentage shattered the school record for a single season as the previous high was .317.

"It was an absolute honor and privilege to coach these four seniors and this entire team. For a first year head coach, I'm not sure it gets any better than this."

The Pirates hit .253 in the match and were led by setter Kamryn Sherman's 28 assists and 11 digs.

The 27 wins are the second-most in program history for the Eagles as they set a new benchmark with 13.26 kills per set and the best opponent attack percentage with .154 since 2000.

For the first time since 2008, five different players finished with at least 200 kills. Harper (410), Wilson (382), junior middle blocker Kiayna O'Neal (Katy, Texas) (221), Santarelli (216) and junior outside hitter Sara Fairley (Charlotte, N.C.) (200) always surpassed that mark.

To stay current with all of the latest Carson-Newman volleyball news stay tuned to cneagles.com and follow @CNathletics and @CarsonNewmanVB on Twitter. 

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