ELON, N.C. – The
Elon volleyball team completed a Southern Conference sweep as it defeated the
Chattanooga Lady Mocs 3-1 (22-25, 25-20, 25-11, 25-20) on Sunday afternoon in
Alumni Gym. Caroline Lemke led the team with a season-best 18 kills, while
committing just four errors for an attack percentage of .483. Elon improves to
21-5 on the season that includes an 8-4 mark in SoCon play. Chattanooga drops
to 3-10 in the conference and 12-14 overall.
Lemke was one of three Phoenix players to record
double-digit kills as Traci Stewart finished with 14 and Jessica Barrow totaled
12. Sarah Schermerhorn tallied nine kills and just one error for an attack
percentage of .444. As a team, Elon recorded nine service aces, including three
by Lizzie West. Setter Emily Regan paced the offensive attack with 51 assists,
one shy from her career-best set exactly one year ago against Western Carolina.
Lemke notched one solo and two assisted blocks to lead the
Phoenix defense. Stewart was second on the team with two block assists. Ali
Deatsch recorded a match-high 20 digs as the defense held Chattanooga to a .161
attack percentage.
Laura Brock led the Lady Mocs with 13 kills and 13 digs.
Courtney Barnes and Elli Kuhn finished with one solo and four block assists.
The Phoenix took a 7-5 lead in the first set before
Chattanooga scored eight of the next 10 points to gain a 13-9 advantage. The
set tied four times before three straight UTC points allowed the Lady Mocs to
take a 21-18 lead. A Chattanooga attack error brought the set to within two at
21-23, but UTC scored two of the final three points to take the set 25-22.
On the service of Regan and West, Elon raced out to an early
6-1 lead in the second set. Chattanooga fought back and tied the set at 10 on a
Phoenix attack error. The teams knotted the score again at 12, but Elon scored
eight of the next nine points that allowed it to take a 20-13 lead. Elon
maintained its lead for the remainder of the set and scored the final two
points that give Elon a 25-20 win on a kill by Barrow and a block by Lemke and
Regan.
In set three, the teams tied four times before a kill by
Barrow sparked a five-point Phoenix run that allowed Elon to take a 15-9 lead.
Chattanooga took advantage of a Phoenix attack error, but Elon responded with
eight consecutive points that put the set out of reach for the Lady Mocs at
23-10. A Phoenix error gave UTC its final point of the set before a kill by
Lemke and a service ace by West sealed set three 25-11.
The final set proved to be a close one as the teams tied
eight times before Chattanooga took a two-point lead that brought the score to
11-10. A Lemke kill sparked a
five-point Phoenix run that allowed Elon to take a 14-11 lead. The team held on
to its lead until a block by Barnes tied the game at 16. Lauren Copenhagen
recorded a kill that ignited a 4-0 run by the Phoenix that gave it a 20-16
lead. The Lady Mocs brought the final set to within one at 20-19, but Elon
scored five of the final seven points of the set to earn a 25-20 win.
Elon hosts UNC Greensboro on Wednesday, November 4 at 7
p.m., in final regular-season match between the schools. Full coverage of the
match, including live stats and video streaming, will be available at www.elonphoenix.com.