Soaring to their first-ever regional final: Eagles sweep Fleet
AIKEN, S.C. – For the first time in program history fourth-seeded Carson-Newman will play for a regional championship after sweeping No. 8 seed Erskine Saturday evening at the Convocation Center 25-23, 25-23 and 25-22 in the Southeast Region semifinal of NCAA Tournament action.
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25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
VIDEO: Postgame Press Conference
AIKEN, S.C. – For the first time in program history fourth-seeded Carson-Newman will play for a regional championship after sweeping No. 8 seed Erskine Saturday evening at the Convocation Center 25-23, 25-23 and 25-22 in the Southeast Region semifinal of NCAA Tournament action.
Carson-Newman (28-7) had been to a regional semifinal match three times, 2009, 2010 and 2014, but were swept in each of those matches.
This year's team has passed the 2014 team for second-most wins in a season bring the 2015 season total to 28.
Saturday's meeting marked the 10th all-time NCAA Tournament match for the Eagles as their record now stands at 5-5 overall in program history.
"That's not the eight seed in this region at all," Carson-Newman coach Dan Ahiers said. "They're a great team. They're well-coached. Lots of weapons. She's done a fantastic job with that program. It was a fun time playing them today. Obviously it's more fun because we won but that's a great team.
I'm really proud of my team. We played great defense tonight. As a collective unit dug almost everything they had. They really had to resort to tipping, roll-shotting. I'm really proud of our block and our dig."
Carson-Newman held Erskine (23-7) to a .059 attack percentage in the opening set with two blocks. The Flying Fleet won five of the first six points before the Eagles rallied to tie the score at six, one of 13 ties in the opening set. The No. 4 seed took a pair of two-point leads that Erskine promptly overcame before the Eagles won the final two points of the set capped by a kill from senior outside hitter Molly Locke (College Grove, Tenn.).
The beginning of the second stanza was neck-and-neck until a 4-1 sequence put the Flying Fleet ahead 10-7. Erskine maintained the lead until a 5-1 jaunt by the Eagles put them ahead 16-15. Carson-Newman extended its lead to 19-15, but Erskine came back to tie the score at 23. Back-to-back kills by freshman middle blocker Natalie Harris (Monroe, N.C.) put the Eagles ahead 2-0 in the match.
The third set saw just six ties and two lead changes as Erskine jumped out to a 9-6 lead before Carson-Newman responded with seven of the next eight points to take a 13-10 lead. The Eagles would lead by as many as five points but the Flying Fleet cut the deficit to one point at 20-19. Carson-Newman promptly won four of the next five to get to match point. Erskine stayed alive with two points but a kill by senior outside hitter Sara Fairley (Charlotte, N.C.) sealed Carson-Newman's first-ever trip to a regional final.
Junior middle blocker Maddie Borch (Walnut Creek, Calif.) once again led the way with a match-high 14 kills while hitting .538 to lead three players with double-digit kills.
Locke finished with 11 kills and 18 digs. For the season, the senior has 420 kills and 414 digs to become the first player since Jenna Rust in 2003 to have at least 400 kills and 400 digs in the same season. Rust achieved those marks in back-to-back season with 457 kills and 592 digs in 2002 and 467 kills and 553 digs in 2003. Locke's 420 kills are ninth-most in a single season in program history.
Sophomore setter Anna Patton (Franklin, Tenn.) had 37 assists and 12 digs on the night upping her season total in helpers to 1,345. That mark ranks fourth on the program's single season list.
Harris finished with 10 kills on a .421 attack percentage and Fairley finished with nine kills and 11 digs.
Carson-Newman had 47 kills on a .246 attack percentage with 68 digs, three blocks and two services aces compared to 40 kills on a .176 hitting percentage with 67 digs, four blocks and two service aces.
Kelly Sullivan was the lone Erskine player in double-digits with 11 kills on a .290 attack percentage. Kristen Dodge handed out 34 assists and Kendall Kirk had a match-high 25 digs.
Carson-Newman will play fellow South Atlantic Conference team Lenoir-Rhyne (25-7) for the fourth time this season for the right to play in the national quarterfinals in Tampa, Fla. The match is scheduled for 4 p.m. with live video being stream here.
The winner of tomorrow's match will play the winner of the Central Region Thursday at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center.
"Just remind our team that we have another hard match tomorrow," Locke said. "We've played L-R three times and each time it hasn't been easy. It's just a mental mindset that we have to go into. We know they are a good team and we know what they can do. We also know what they can do."
The Eagles swept the Bears in two regular season matches but Lenoir-Rhyne bounced the Eagles in the SAC Tournament semifinals on Nov. 21st.
Lenoir-Rhyne is one of the hottest teams in the country having won 13 straight matches. Only Arkansas-Fort Smith, Concordia St. Paul and Alaska Anchorage have longer current winning streaks than the Bears.
The seventh-seeded team in the Southeast Region has used a pair of four-set victories to reach this point defeating second-seeded Flagler and sixth-seeded Lander over the past two days.
Sunday's match will mark the 51st meeting between Carson-Newman and Lenoir-Rhyne with the Eagles holding a 31-19 all-time advantage in the series. It will be the first time the two schools have met in an NCAA Tournament match.
Team Stats
Erskine
| Game Statistics | Erskine | Carson-Newman |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .176 | .246 |
| Blocks | 4.0 | 3.0 |
| Digs | 67 | 68 |
| Aces | 2 | 2 |
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