BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The fourth-seeded Wofford volleyball team advances in the 2021 Southern Conference Volleyball Championships for the first time since 2017 after securing a four-set quarterfinals victory over fifth-seeded Western Carolina (11-17, 7-9 SoCon), 25-20, 25-17, 23-25, 25-19, at the Pete Hanna Center in Birmingham, Ala. on Friday afternoon. Three Terriers finished in double figures, led by Emory Wyatt with a match-best 14 kills, while sophomore setter Emily Hodsdon moved into eighth all-time in assists at Wofford with a 48-assist performance to help pace Wofford to its 16^th victory of the season.
 
The 16-win mark marks the most under head coach Lynze Roos since recording 22 for the 2017 season, as the Terriers will face the winner of No. 1 Mercer/ No. 9 Furman in Saturday's semifinals at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.
 
"It feels good. I think that our team is playing really strong right now and they're really connecting to each other," said head coach Lynze Roos of the victory. "It was a great feeling to finish the job there [in the fourth] and win the match."
 
Wofford finished the match hitting .252 on 59 kills, while tallying 12 blocks to WCU's six, and held the Catamounts to just .195 hitting on the afternoon.
 
Wofford has tallied 10 or more blocks in 12 matches this season and has won eight matches when doing so, currently ranked second in SoCon for blocks with 2.15/s.
 
Junior Emory Wyatt tallied a match-high 14 kills on 33 swings (.333) with three blocks and four digs to lead Wofford, followed by classmates Kennedy Smith and Bella Zeman with 13 kills apiece to round out the Terriers in double figures. Zeman matched a season-high with the double-digit performance, including a block and four digs, while Smith narrowly fell short of a double-double with nine digs.
 
Sophomore setter Emily Hodsdon amassed 48 assists to fuel Wofford's attack, along with matching a season-high of four blocks and adding two kills and seven digs. Hodsdon passes April Hughes '89 (1,679 assists) for the eighth all-time spot with 1,717 career assists in just her sophomore season.
 
All-Freshman selection Sarah MacLean recorded nine kills on 19 swings (.316) while denying a career and team-high seven blocks. Sarah Barham added eight kills on 19 swings (.316), along with five blocks – marking her 13^th match this season tallying at least five blocks. The Second Team All-SoCon honoree continues as the league's block leader with 125 on the season.
 
Libero Kaitlyn Brown tallied a match-high 18 digs, while sophomore outside hitter Addison Foote registered a career-best three aces and a block and Abbey Richman recorded four digs, an ace and assist. Chasidy Sharpe (one ace and dig) and Robyn Krause (one dig) round out Wofford's contributions.
 
Wofford opened with a 15-13 lead in the first set prior to consecutive Kennedy Smith kills forcing a WCU timeout with a four-point cushion, 17-13. A Catamounts service error and another Smith kill brought Wofford's largest lead of the set at 21-15 before Wyatt and Smith points continued, forcing WCU to burn its final timeout at 23-18. A Sarah MacLean and Addison Foote combination block sparked set point, as Wyatt dialed home the winner to claim the first set, 25-20.
 
The second set was all the Terriers, hitting .326 in the frame, opening with six immediate kills through the opening rallies to hold an early 8-3 edge. The Catamounts came within three (12-9), though, a 9-5 Wofford run capped by a Chasidy Sharpe ace burned WCU's final timeout with a healthy 21-14 lead. Efforts from Barham, Zeman and an Addison Foote ace brought set point, while Barham swung home the winner for the 25-17 decision.
 
On the brink of a straight-set victory in the third set, the Catamounts rallied late to come away with a 25-23 decision and hold off the sweep, though, the Terriers got back on track in the fourth set in holding a 15-12 advantage at the media timeout.
 
The Catamounts deadlocked the set at 16-16 before a Bella Zeman kill and crucial Sarah Barham solo block pushed a two-point lead, 18-16, at a WCU timeout. Wofford then pushed a 3-0 run, featuring a Wyatt / Barham combo block, to burn the Catamounts final timeout of the match at 21-16. WCU answered with a 3-0 spurt of its own to get the Terriers to talk things over at 23-19, though, Wofford regained its composure to see Bella Zeman swing home her 13^th kill for set-point, while Foote would end the match with her career-best ace to hand Wofford the quarterfinals victory.