Box Score

ELON, N.C. – After dropping the first set, the Elon volleyball team came back to win the next three to earn an exciting 3-1 (20-25, 28-26, 25-22, 25-20) win over division rival Appalachian State. The Phoenix pulled even in conference play with the win to improve to 13-6 on the season (2-2 SoCon), while the Mountaineers fall to 10-7 (2-1 SoCon).
 
“The fans got to see a great match tonight,” said head Elon volleyball coach Mary Tendler. “Both teams played really well. Our ball control was good enough to get the ball to our middles and Caroline (Lemke) and Kris (Harris) took over the match from there. It was nice to come back in the second set and pull out the win, which gave us momentum for the rest of the match.”
 
Senior Caroline Lemke hit .552 after recording 17 kills off 29 attempts with only one error. Freshman Kris Harris also had a great night with a career-high 13 kills for a .440 attack percentage. Seniors Megan McMahon and Nickie Halbert split the passing duties to finish with 29 and 24 assists, respectively.
 
The Elon middle blockers also controlled the net on defense as Harris tallied six blocks and Lemke recorded four.
 
In the first set, the Mountaineers took an early 6-2 lead before the Phoenix used two kills by Lemke and one by freshman Danielle Smith to pull within one, 8-7. Trailing by seven, 20-13, Elon scored three straight to cut the deficit to four and force ASU to call its first timeout. Out of the timeout, the Mountaineers scored five of the next nine points to take the win, 25-20.
 
With the second set tied at nine-all, Elon used a kill by Harris and several ASU miscues to score three unanswered for a 12-9 lead. A kill by Lemke moved the score to 14-12 in favor of the maroon and gold, but the Mountaineers were able to pull ahead, 17-15. The Phoenix then knotted the set at 17-all with an ace from junior Ali Deatsch, who ranks sixth in the country in aces per set, and a kill from D. Smith. With the score at a 24-23 Elon advantage, ASU managed to hold the Phoenix at set point three times before a kill by junior Allison Johnson and a block by Harris and Johnson gave Elon the 28-26 set win to tie the match.
 
The third set remained very tight with nine ties and neither team taking more than a two-point lead until Elon grabbed a three-point advantage, 18-15, with the help of two kills by freshman Chanelle Smith. The Phoenix then went on a 4-2 run off several Mountaineer mistakes and a kill from Johnson to take a 20-18 lead. After ASU pulled within one, 21-20, the maroon and gold earned four of the next six points to win the set, 25-22, capped off by a block by Lemke and C. Smith.
 
The fourth set took on the tone of the rest of the match with the score remaining close before a three-point run by Elon, capped by a block by Harris and Johnson, put the Phoenix up four, 13-9. Kills by Harris and Lemke kept the maroon and gold up by three to four points before ASU pulled within two, 21-19, forcing Elon to call its first timeout of the set. Out of the break, the Phoenix went on a 4-1 run to end the set, 25-20, and take its second straight win over the Mountaineers.
 
The Elon volleyball team will hit the road next weekend for matches at Samford on Saturday, Oct. 8, at 3 p.m. and at Chattanooga on Sunday, Oct. 9, at 2 p.m.