November 11, 2024

Volleyball at Limestone for Final Regular Season Road Match

Carson-Newman plays its final regular season road match in a rematch against Limestone.

Limestone

7-14,6-12 SAC

Carson-Newman

16-9,12-5 SAC

Final	1	2	3	4	T
Limestone 7-14,6-12 SAC	31	25	25	25	3
Carson-Newman 16-9,12-5 SAC	33	16	20	16	1

MATCH NOTES

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman plays its final road match of the regular season with a rematch against Limestone.

Carson-Newman (16-8, 12-4 SAC) has stumbled its last two matches, losing its first home match of the season against Mars Hill on Nov. 6 before hitting the road and falling to Coker in upset fashion. Next on the docket is a rematch with Limestone (6-14, 5-13 SAC), a team the Eagles haven't seen since Sept. 24 inside Holt Fieldhouse, a sweep for C-N.

Limestone is in its worst stretch of the season, having dropped eight of its last nine matches and hosting Carson-Newman in its regular-season finale. Prior to Tuesday's contest against the Eagles, the Saints are a half-match back of UVA Wise for the final spot in the SAC Tournament.

Carson-Newman swept Limestone in Jefferson City earlier this season. Mia McMillen led the Saints with eight kills, while Taylor Keeran (Galion, Ohio) led the Eagles with nine.

McMillen leads Limestone with 255 kills, just under three per set. The Saints have used two setters primarily: Jenna Szabelski and Kamden Dalton. Each has over 200 assists, for over four and three per set, respectively.

Sarah Konovodoff and McMillen lead in digs with over 300 each, while no other Saint has collected over 160. Chloe Ratcliff is the top middle blocker with 61 total blocks on the season.

Carson-Newman has won the past two meetings with the Saints, with its last loss coming in Gaffney last season. The Eagles are 2-1 all-time inside the Timken Center and 9-2 against the Saints all-time.

Carson-Newman has just two matches left on its regular season schedule. It has already clinched a spot in the SAC Tournament, but it is still fighting for a top-four seed to host a quarterfinal.

The Eagles have to win just one more match to ensure a hosting spot. A single win and Mars Hill's victory would push both teams to a 13-5 record, with Carson-Newman holding the tiebreaker.

Carson-Newman is being helped offensively by two standout freshmen, Maddie Hurst (Blaine, Tenn.) and Emerson Ahsmuhs (Placentia, Calif.), each with over 2.80 kills per set. SAC Player of the Year Candidate Blair Cherry (Knoxville, Tenn.) is the top setter with 9.92 assists per set and currently sits eighth all-time in Carson-Newman's career assists in just her sophomore year.

Bennett McCombs (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) serves as the top libero, while Hurst combines with Keeran as the top middle blockers.

Following the match with Limestone, the Eagles return home for the regular season finale in a blockbuster match with Anderson (S.C.).

First serve is set for 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday from the Timken Center in Gaffney, S.C. The match can be watched with a subscription on FloSports, or you can follow along for free online by following @CN_Eagles on X.

To keep up to date with Carson-Newman Volleyball, follow us on social media @CN_Eagles on X and Instagram or Facebook at Carson-Newman Athletics.