The Citadel Defeats Aggies In Three
CHARLESTON, S.C.-The North Carolina A&T volleyball team was swept by The Citadel Bulldogs on Tuesday evening at McAlister Fieldhouse 25-18, 25-21, 25-20. The Aggies made late runs in the second and third sets, but were unable to complete the come-from-behind victories.
The Aggies were led offensively by senior middle hitter Andrea Evans who tallied nine kills. Freshman Te'Borah Hawkins-Hollingsworth had eight kills and posted a team-best .375 hitting percentage. Junior Jeana Daniels led the team with five blocks, which matched a season-best. Freshman Ashley Johnson recorded a team-best 24 digs in the match for her 17th double-digit digs match.
A&T hit a match-best .179 in the third set, and took an early lead, but were unable to finish. The Aggies pulled ahead to a 7-4 advantage after a pair of kills from Evans and one from freshman Brooke Stamnes, who posted five kills in the third game. The Aggies held onto their slim lead for a few moments. A kill by Daniels tied it at9, but the Bulldogs (5-22) went on a 4-0 run to take the upper hand. A kill by Evans brought A&T within two at 15-13, but another 4-0 run allowed The Citadel to hold off the A&T threat. The Aggies put together their own 4-0 run to pull within two at 19-17. The Bulldogs answered with a five-point run and won the match on a kill by Lauren Hunt.
The Aggies struggled in the first and second set. In the first set, Hawkins-Hollingsworth pulled A&T within three points with a kill at 9-6. But that was the closest the Aggies got as the Bulldogs would take the first set behind six kills by Rachel Farrell. The Citadel took an 11-4 lead in the second set. The Aggies made a late surge, going on a 5-0 run to pull within four at 22-18. The Aggies pulled within three and held off set point on a ball handling error by Mikaela Tracy at 24-21. But a kill from Bailey Kernodle won the set for The Citadel to give them a 2-0 lead in the match.
The Aggies (1-26, 1-4) will travel to Durham on Friday to take on the N.C. Central Eagles at 7 p.m., in the first of their final five MEAC matches of the regular season, which will determine if they advance to the MEAC tournament.
