CHARLESTON, S.C. – Elon University volleyball secured its third-straight victory as the maroon and gold downed College of Charleston 3-2 on Friday night, Oct. 4 in TD Arena. 
 
"It was a really fun match tonight," said head coach Mary Tendler. "Both teams competed hard and it could of went either way. I loved our energy and our defense got better as we got later in the match. Picking up a road win is huge in the CAA and we've got another tough challenge in Wilmington on Sunday."
 
With the win, the Phoenix moves to 8-8 overall and remains perfect in CAA play at 3-0.
 
Elon 3, Charleston 2 | 23-25, 25-21, 17-25, 25-20, 15-12
THE RUNDOWN
The Cougars (3-12, 0-3) broke open a 9-9 score in the opening set with four unanswered points. Later, a pair of Charleston errors and a kill by Leah Daniel trimmed the hosts' lead to 21-18. Elon was able to get to within a point at 23-22 as Daniel scored again, Jordan Gower set up Jenn Krzeminski, and Nori Thomas joined Krzeminski on a block. However, CofC secured two of the next three points for the 1-0 lead.

Elon responded with a 25-21 decision in Set Two. After a service ace gave the Cougars the lead at 21-20, Kodi Garcia assited Daniel on three straight kills. Krzeminski then recorded a solo block and a block assist with Daniel for the set point and a 1-1 tie.

The seesaw battle continued in the third set as the Cougars jumped out to an early 8-2 advantage. The Phoenix was never able to overcome that gap, and CofC went up 2-1 with a 25-17 tally. Elon wasn't done just yet, though, as the maroon and gold pulled away down the stretch in Set Four. A pair of Thomas kills, another from Kellyn Trowse, and an ace by Gower built a 23-17 lead. Thomas later scored another attack and the Cougars committed a set error to force a decisive set.

Neither team could string together more than two points for most of the final set. Tied at 12-12, Garcia assisted Daniel and Isabella Seman set up Haylie Clark to force match point. The combo of Clark and Daniel then brought the match to its conclusion as the Phoenix earned the positive result.
 
HIGHLIGHTS
Three players reached double-digit kills, with Daniel converting 19-of-53 attacks (.189) to lead the way. Trowse followed with 12 kills, and Thomas was right behind her with 11. Garcia reached 27 assists and Clark added 24. Daniel, Alex VanWestrienen, and Gower each served one ace. Gower and VanWestrienen both set season highs with 22 and 11 digs, respectively. Clark also reached double-digit digs with 16, marking her fourth double-double of the season. Krzeminski continued her strong presence at the net as the freshman recorded six blocks (two solo).

NOTES
-The win is the first against the Cougars since a 3-2 final in Charleston on Oct. 15, 2006.
-The Phoenix is 3-0 to start league play for the second time in its Division I history. The 2006 team also went 3-0 to begin its slate of SoCon matches.
-Daniel entered the match ranked 16th in the nation in total kills (242) and points (268.0).
-The match featured 30 ties and 14 lead changes.
-Elon led the Cougars in kills (64-57), assists (60-53), and points (76.0 - 72.0).
 
UP NEXT
Elon continues its road trip this Sunday, Oct. 6 with a 1 p.m. CAA match at UNCW.