September 22, 2025

Volleyball looks to bounce back with midweek match at Tusculum

After suffering their first loss of the season, Carson-Newman volleyball will travel to Tusculum looking to get back in the win column.

Carson-Newman

11-1,2-1 SAC

Tusculum

3-7,1-3 SAC

Final	1	2	3	T
Carson-Newman 11-1,2-1 SAC	25	25	25	3
Tusculum 3-7,1-3 SAC	12	20	23	0

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - After suffering their first loss of the season, Carson-Newman volleyball will travel to Tusculum looking to get back in the win column.

The Eagles are in a spot they haven't been in yet this season: in the losing column. This match against Tusculum will be an opportunity for Carson-Newman to get back into the right lane before heading into their toughest competition of year on Friday against #20 Wingate.

The Pioneers are in similar standing, coming off a loss to the ranked Bulldogs in three sets. Tusculum hasn't had a huge amount of success in the early goings of the season, sitting 3-6 overall and spacing out their wins with at least two losses between each win. The Pioneers are also 1-2 in the SAC, losing early in the season to Lincoln Memorial and picking up their first conference win in five sets against Emory & Henry a week ago.

The Pioneers don't rank higher than 6th in any statistical category in the SAC. The one category that has been a relative bright spot for Tusculum this season is their blocking ability, sitting 6th in the league with 59.0 total blocks and 8th in blocks per set (1.59). TU's back row defense has struggled, though. The Pioneers are last place in the conference in digs per set with 13.22. In comparison with Carson-Newman, the Eagles are averaging five more digs a set than Tusculum.

Three Pioneers are averaging above two kills a set; Breana Pelbath has led the way with 73 kills, while Mackenzie Land and Jaida Alvin follow closely with 72 and 71, respectively. Victoria Church is 6th among SAC competitors in assists per set with 6.16 a set while Taylor Sanders leads the back row with 2.78 digs per set. Six pioneers are averaging over 0.4 blocks per set.

Carson-Newman is coming off its biggest struggle of the season in a three-set loss to Lenoir-Rhyne. Head coach Cat Collins took accountability for the loss postgame, saying the preparation for the game against the Bears was not followed, and the process would change next week to better prepare her athletes.

The Eagles had their worst game in most statistical categories, notching just 35 kills, a season high nine service errors, and their second worst hitting percentage of the season (.191). The shining light for Carson-Newman was Emerson Ahsmuhs. The sophomore notched a team high 14 kills and 3 blocks. That game counted for Ahsmuhs' 9th double-digit kill performance of the year. L-R's Hadley Prince kept the ball up for the Bears with 15 digs. She was crowned the SAC's defensive performer of the week for her performance against Carson-Newman.

This was Carson-Newman's first home-opener loss since 2018.

The matchup between Carson-Newman and Tusculum dates back to at least the 1992 season, where Tusculum won the first all-time matchup in two sets. Since then, it's been an incredibly back-and-forth series. The Pioneers and Eagles nearly traded wins and losses from 1992 to the mid-2000s, where Carson-Newman began to pull ahead. Despite the recent success for Carson-Newman, the Eagles just narrowly hold the edge in the series 36-34.

As previously mentioned, though, it's been Carson-Newman domination. The Eagles have won seven of the last ten matches. What's more, C-N has won six of the last seven. The last time Tusculum beat the Eagles was back in 2023, when they swept the Eagles at home. Carson-Newman hasn't lost to the Pioneers at home since the 2021 season, when they fell in five sets. Carson-Newman is 13-9 against Tusculum on the road dating back to 2002.

This has been a close series for either side, though. The Pioneers and Eagles have gone to five sets in seven of the last 20 matches and 15 of the last twenty have taken more than three sets to settle.

The Pioneers were 13-14 overall last season but held an 11-7 record in the conference. That was good enough to get them into the SAC tournament. Their draw, though, was unfortunate. They had to play Lenoir-Rhyne in the SAC quarterfinals, where they lost in three sets. Just four days before, the Pioneers had swept Lenoir-Rhyne on their senior night to end their regular season. Allison McLarty was the best hitter for the Pioneers. In her freshman season, the rookie tallied 265 kills. She was supported by graduating senior Mikayla Willey, who averaged 2.46 kills per set and racked up 231 on the season. The Pioneers also graduated their starting libero Amiranne Au who averaged 4.19 digs per set and their starting setter Madison Adkins who was averaging just under 9 assists a set.

Before Tuesday, Carson-Newman was one of 21 teams in the nation left undefeated before Friday. The Eagles had won ten in a row and were among nationally ranked teams in overall record. After Friday's loss, Carson-Newman leaves 13 teams left undefeated in the nation. No teams in the SAC remain undefeated.

Also, the loss for Carson-Newman was a rare one as far as home openers are concerned in C-N history. The Eagles are typically very good in home openers, and haven't lost in their first game of the season at home since 2018 when they lost to Wingate in three sets.

Carson-Newman will head to Greeneville, Tennessee, where the matchup will take place inside Pioneer Arena beginning at 6:00 PM in a special themed black-out game. Streaming will be available on FloSports as well as on the Eagles Radio Network.