Richmond, Va. – The Elon University volleyball team beat VCU In four sets Saturday afternoon to earn its first victory of the 2022 season. That win followed a four-set loss to High Point earlier in the day at the VCU Tournament. Jordan Gower was named to the VCU Invitational All-Tournament team after posting 70 digs and a .974 serve receive percentage for the weekend.
 

• After taking an early 5-4 lead, Elon won just five more points in the first set, as High Point finished the frame on a 9-0 run to win it 25-10.
• Elon fell behind 9-5 in the second set but answered with a 4-0 run to tie the score. However, the Panthers won nine of the next 10 points to take an 18-10 lead.
• Elon rallied late in the second with kills from Brooke Doherty, Lily Emlong, Jenn Krzeminski and Haylie Clark, but the Phoenix fell short, losing the set 25-18.
• Both teams traded points early in the third set, but four kills by Leah Daniel and two from Krzeminski fueled an 11-2 Elon run to put the Phoenix ahead 16-9. Another kill by Daniel clinched the third set for Elon, 25-20.
• The beginning of the fourth set was tight, but High Point pulled away midway through the stanza and led by as many as eight points. The Phoenix got back to within five, but the Panthers finished on a 6-2 run to win the set and close out the match.

• Leah Daniel led Elon with 13 kills, while Jenn Krzeminski added eight.
• Freshman Brooke Doherty tallied seven kills for the second straight match.
• Ericka Link led the Phoenix with 21 assists. Haylie Clark, the defending CAA Setter of the Year, had 13.
• Jordan Gower's 29 digs led the way for the maroon and gold.
• Lily Emlong (6) and Lily Barker (4) led the Phoenix in blocks.
• Elon had 8.0 blocks as a team, compared to High Point's 5.0.

• After a back-and-forth start, Elon went on a 7-1 run in the middle of the first set fueled by three Lily Barker kills to take a 14-8 lead. Elon won the final three points behind kills from Haylie Clark and Leah Daniel to take the set, 25-20.
• The Phoenix fell behind early in the second set, as the Rams built a commanding 15-5 lead. Elon cut the deficit to as little as five, but VCU finished the set on a 5-0 run to win the set and even the match.
• Elon got off to a fast start in the third set and held a three-point lead at the midway point. Up 12-9, Daniel delivered four kills in a six-point span to stretch the Phoenix's advantage to seven. An ace by Jordan Gower clinched the set for Elon, 25-15.
• Both teams traded points throughout in the fourth set, as neither led by more than two until a late 4-0 run gave Elon a 21-17 edge. Two kills by Lily Emlong and one from Daniel propelled the Phoenix over the finish line, as Elon took the fourth set 25-22 to win the match.

• Leah Daniel again led Elon in kills with 21. Lily Emlong (12) and Lily Barker (7) both posted career-highs in kills.
• Haylie Clark had 25 assists to lead the way for the Phoenix. Ericka Link tallied 17 assists of her own.
• Jordan Gower finished with a team-high 27 digs. Alex VanWestrienen (18) and Clark (10) also had double-digit dig totals.
• Emlong led Elon in blocks for the second straight match with four. Jenn Krzeminski and Clark added three blocks each.
• Elon outpaced VCU in kills (54-43) and digs (81-65). Both teams finished with 7.0 blocks.
• The Phoenix finished with a season-high six aces, including a team-high two from Gower.
• Eight Elon players registered at least one kill, with seven players posting finishing with multiple kills.

FROM COACH MARY TENDLER
"It was good to get the split today after a short break between matches. We made some changes in the first match that were effective; we just struggled sustaining the execution. Our serve was very effective against VCU, which helped our defensive efforts. Jordan Gower played at a very high level all weekend and made some amazing plays. The rest of our team really feeds off of her. We faced some tough competition this weekend, which made us better."

• Elon will compete in the NC State Tournament in Raleigh, N.C. next Friday and Saturday, Sept. 2-3. The Phoenix will play a pair of matches on Friday, facing Colgate at 11 a.m. before taking on Tennessee at 4 p.m. The maroon and gold conclude the tournament on Saturday with a 2 p.m. matchup against host NC State.
• Following that tournament, Elon will host Duke for its home opener on Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 6:00 p.m. inside Schar Center.