Box Score November 11, 2009
Wofford vs. Furman Box Score
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Terriers battled against Furman in Southern Conference volleyball action on Wednesday night, but fell in four sets (25-22, 16-25, 20-25, 19-25). Despite earning a win in the first set, Wofford could not overcome the current SoCon South Division leaders.
Wofford came out strong, controlling most of the first set. The Terriers took an early 9-4 lead, capitalizing on several Furman attack errors. Wofford was able to maintain the advantage, keeping the Paladins in a three to four-point deficit until a Wofford attack error put Furman within two points at 17-15. The Terriers earned the side out immediately, pushing their lead to 18-15, but a 4-1 run by the Paladins tied the score at 19. The Terriers held on, however to take the first set 25-22.
The tables turned in the second set, with Furman claiming an early lead at 5-2. Wofford regrouped to tie the score at five, but the Paladins responded with a quick kill to take the advantage again. The Paladins would not fall behind for the remainder of the set, steadily building their lead to a 25-16 victory.
Furman continued to carry the momentum into the third set, jumping out to an early 6-0 advantage behind strong serving from freshman Natalie Braun. A Paladin error gave the Terriers their first point of the set, but Furman responded with a kill to claim the serve and a 7-1 lead. The Paladins led by as many as 11 at 15-4, but the Terriers continued to fight, bring the score to a more manageable four-point deficit at 16-20. The Paladin advantage proved too large to overcome, however, and the Paladins took a 2-1 match lead by a score of 25-20 in the third set.
The fourth set was the closest of the match, with eight tied scores, all eight occurring in the first half of the set. The teams notched their last tie at 11, and Furman took advantage of a few Terrier miscues to record a 4-0 run and take the largest lead of the set thus far at 15-11. Wofford battled, but was not able to overcome the deficit, falling 25-19 in the fourth set.
Freshman Chandler Ambrester led the Paladins with 21 kills. Fellow freshman Caroline Adams added 10 kills and seven total blocks for Furman, while sophomore Carolyn Nicoletti anchored the floor defense with 28 digs. Three other Paladins notched double-digit digs with Natalie Braun contributing 19 and setter Kelsey Salava and defensive specialist Brooke Ellison adding 15 each. Salava recorded a double-double with 41 assists.
The Terriers were led by senior Shanna Hughes’ 10 kills and 14 digs, her eighth double-double of the season. Setter Joanna Suddath also recorded a double-double with 26 assists and 14 digs. Libero Sarah Palmer paced the team with 25 defensive saves, one shy of her career high, while junior Stacy Byrd added 18 and notched seven total blocks. Freshman Arden Anderson led the team with eight total blocks, setting a career high and tying for third in the Wofford four-set match records.
With the loss, Wofford falls to 17-13 overall and 4-10 in the Southern Conference. Furman improves to 23-3 on the season and 14-0 in league play, while also claiming the SoCon regular season championship and the right to host the 2009 Southern Conference tournament. The Terriers will face College of Charleston on Friday, November 13. Match time is set for 7:00 p.m. in Benjamin Johnson Arena.
