SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Elon University volleyball team beat South Carolina State in three sets Friday afternoon to earn its first victory of the 2023 season. That win followed a three-set loss to Georgia State earlier in the day at the Wofford Invitational. 
 
Elon 0, Georgia State 3 (17-25, 22-25, 24-26)  
 
HOW IT HAPPENED 

• After a back-and-forth start, Georgia State went on a 4-0 run late in the first set fueled by a kill, an ace and a pair of Elon attacking errors to take an 18-14 lead. Georgia State finished on a 7-3 run to win the set 25-17. 
• Elon fell behind 13-8 in the second set but answered with a 5-2 run to cut Georgia State's lead to two. Elon then won five of the next nine points to get within one. It was a battle to 25 but the Panthers came out on top, winning 25-22. 
• The third set saw a back-and-forth battle all the way until the end. The Phoenix saw the lead 24-23, but with three consecutive attacking errors, Georgia State sealed the match 26-24.  

 
NOTES 

• Cameron Lanier had a team-best and career-high 14 kills, followed by Keira Kasten with a career-best six kills.  
• Jessica Parker and Ericka Link both tallied 14 assists on the match. 
• Jordan Gower surpassed 20 digs for the third consecutive match as she led the team with 22. 
• Caroline Doyle had her third-straight match with an ace for the Phoenix.  
• Lanier also led the team in blocks with three, followed by Lindsey Harris and Kyla Johnson who each had two.  
• Elon matched the Panthers with 33 kills. The Phoenix also led in blocks (8-7) and assists (31-29).  

 
Elon 3, South Carolina State 0 (25-12, 25-15, 25-16) 

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• Parker got the Phoenix going with back-to-back aces to start the first set.  
• Johnson would then go on a 10-0 run fueled by two aces, five kills and three attacking errors from the Bulldogs to put Elon up 15-2. South Carolina would not recover from the deficit and a pair of kills from Lanier and Johnson would close out the first set giving the Phoenix the win 25-12. 
• The Phoenix got off to a fast start in the second set and held a six-point lead at the midway point. Up 12-6, four Elon delivered three kills in a six-point span to stretch the Phoenix advantage to eight. A kill and ace by Lily Barker clinched the set for Elon, 25-15. 
• Both teams traded points throughout the third set, as neither team led by more than two until a 3-0 run gave Elon a 15-10 edge. The Bulldogs would only score six more points as Elon took the third set 25-16 to win the match. 

 
NOTES 

• Lanier again paced the Phoenix with 9 kills. Clara LaRue followed with a season-best 7 kills while Kasten and Caroline Berlekamp each had 5 kills.  
• Parker led the team in assists with 18.  
• Johnson led the team with a career-high 5 service aces. Parker followed with four and Gower had two. Link, Barker, and Doyle each had one. This is Doyle's fourth-straight match with an ace.  
• Gower led Elon in digs for the fourth-straight match with nine. Doyle finished with seven, and Johnson tallied a career-high six digs.  
• The Phoenix recorded 14 aces, it's the most the Phoenix have had in a match since Elon recorded 14 against William & Mary on Oct. 31, 2014. 
• Elon limited South Carolina State to a .011 hitting percentage, Elon's lowest opponent hitting percentage so far this season.  

FROM COACH MARY TENDLER 
"It feels good to come back from our loss this morning and get the win. The players worked hard in practice this past week to make some changes. I'm glad they got rewarded for their efforts.  When we limit our unforced errors, we give ourselves a chance to be successful and we're a lot of fun to watch." 
 

UP NEXT 

• Elon will face tournament host Wofford at 1 p.m. tomorrow.