KSU’s volleyball team continued to build on their 2012 season, picking up their 10th win against UNC-Asheville on Sept. 15 and going 2-1 for the weekend at the 49er Invitational in Charlotte, NC.
On Saturday, the Owls defeated UNC-Asheville 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-13) on the final day of competition, improving their record to 10-4. The Owl’s attack overpowered the Bulldogs with a .316 hitting percentage for the match and senior Turea Jones had an impressive outing with 12 kills and eight digs. Junior setter Sara Metroka also had another solid performance with 38 assists.
KSU’s only loss for the weekend occurred early on the Saturday double-header and was indeed a tough defeat, falling to Towson 0-3 (19-25, 17-25, 25-14). Going into the match, KSU head coach Karen Weatherington described Towson to be a good experienced team, with a lot of size. The Tigers pounced on the Owls with a .368 attack percentage, the highest percentage allowed by KSU all season.
Despite only having a .095 hitting percentage for the match, KSU still put up a fight in the second set. The Owls were able to cut the lead to one with a 14-13 score, but the Tiger’s offense proved to be too good, answering back with four straight points and eventually taking the second set 25-17.
Jones led the Owls with eight kills and Metroka had 17 assists against the Tigers. Junior libero Camille Pedraza put up the only double-digit dig performance of the day with 13.
KSU began the 49er Invitational on Friday with an impressive performance against Charlotte, the host team, winning in straight sets 3-0 (25-15, 25-22, 25-17). The Owls held the 49ers to a .164 attack percentage for the match. Coach Weatherington was pleased with her players’ performances, keeping their opponent’s attackers at bay.
“That’s exactly what we wanted to do coming out of the gate,”Weatherington said. “We held their big hitters in check in a very hostile environment. I couldn’t have asked for a better performance.”
Jones led the Owl’s charge with 12 kills and eight digs, while junior outside hitter Emily Bean had 10 kills and a .533 attack percentage. To finish the match, KSU had a .278 hitting percentage, the second highest percentage on the road this season.
Despite coming home empty handed, KSU still produced two All-Tournament performances. Metroka earned her second All- Tournament nod with 85 assists and Bean received honors with 20 kills, 13 digs and three blocks to conclude tournament play.
The Owls will begin Atlantic- Sun Conference play on Sept. 18 against USC Upstate.
