GREENSBORO, N.C. – Despite dropping the first set inside the Fleming Gymnasium Friday night, the Wofford volleyball team remained steadfast and utilized 15 blocks alongside eight aces to push past the UNCG Spartans in four sets (20-25, 25-19, 25-14, 25-11). Wofford remains undefeated in conference play at 5-0 while improving to 14-2 overall on the season. UNCG drops to 1-16 and 0-6 in the SoCon.
 
Wofford's 14-2 record is now the best start to a season in program history, topping the previous mark of 13-2 in 2009. The Terrier winning streak has now reached 10 matches, the first to reach double-digits since that 2009 season, which saw Wofford win 12 in a row.
 
The Terriers owned the net and the service line in the contest, besting UNCG 15-7 in blocks and 8-1 in aces. The 15 blocks tie for sixth-most in a four-set match in program history. This marks the third time this season that Wofford has tallied double-digit denials. The Terriers also topped the Spartans in kills (49-36), assists (47-33) and digs (59-58).
 
Wofford again utilized a balanced attack, which tonight was led by two with double-digit kills. Freshman Bri Mahoney tied her career high with 11 as Mary Emily Morgan was just behind with 10. Morgan added 12 digs to tally her second double-double of the season and the fifth of her career. Five Terriers recorded five or more kills, with Sarah MacLean adding nine, Addison Foote adding eight and Sarah Barham reaching five.
 
Mahoney and MacLean were the two most efficient attackers, hitting .348 and .316, respectively. The attack was paced by Taylor Pecht and Emily Hodsdon each dishing double-digit assists. Pecht led the way with 24, and Hodsdon contributed 15. Hodsdon led the service efforts with four, half of Wofford's total aces. Foote added three, and Pecht recorded the remaining ace.
 
Abbey Richman proved why she is the reigning SoCon Defensive Player of the Week and Month, recording 15 digs to lead the squad. She has stretched her double-digit dig streak to 37-straight matches. Alongside Morgan's 12, Foote also scooped 12 to reach double figures.
 
Sarah Barham paced the blocking efforts, tallying 11 to tie for fourth most in a four-set match program history. More importantly, the 11 denials give her 400 blocks in her career, making her the third Terrier ever to reach the milestone. She is the first to do so at the Division I level. Beside Barham's blocking milestone, Sarah MacLean added eight blocks herself for a new career high.
 
Set one was a true outlier from the remainder of the match. It was the only set in which Wofford hit below .100 (-.034) and the only one in which UNCG hit above 0.0 (.235). The Spartans claimed the first three points of the match and would hold the advantage for most of the set, though Wofford would not make it comfortable. An Emily Hodsdon kill tied the affair at 4-4 before UNCG reclaimed the lead. Wofford tied the set again at 7-7 but once more could not claim the lead. Wofford finally pulled in front with a six-point run in the middle portions. A service error set up a Hodsdon ace. An Annemarie Rakoski kill coupled with another Hodsdon ace powered the run, which saw the Terriers pull ahead 16-13. But UNCG would pull back in front with its own four-point swing, and the Terriers were unable to keep pace from there, falling 25-20 in the opening frame.
 
Bri Mahoney opened set two with a kill, and Addison Foote followed with an ace. Set two was a tight battle the whole way, with Wofford holding a slight 19-17 edge in the later portions. A Sarah MacLean kill sparked a three-point swing for a 22-17 advantage. This created just enough separation to keep the Spartans at bay, as they were unable to recover from there. Though they claimed a pair of points, Mary Emily Morgan and Mahoney delivered back-to-back kills to ice the set, 25-19. A key difference between sets one and two was the blocking. Wofford was held without a single block in the first set but claimed five in the second, powered by four from Sarah Barham.
 
With some newfound momentum, the Terriers remained hot out of the gates in set three. Addison Foote put home a pair of kills to open the frame, which saw the Terriers race out to a quick 7-1 advantage. Foote was responsible for four of those points by way of three kills and an ace. That early hole proved too much for the Spartans to overcome, as Wofford raced to a 25-14 dominant set three victory. Foote took over in the third frame with five total kills and an ace. Barham added four more blocks. Wofford upped its attacking mark to .216 in the third while holding UNCG to an even .000 for a second-straight set.
 
Though the Spartans claimed the first point of set four, Wofford continued to roll early in the frame, racing to an early 6-2 lead. Bri Mahoney added three kills with another Addison Foote ace in that swing. The sides traded some blows as UNCG vied to stay alive, with the margin close at 10-7. That was when a pair of Spartan errors kicked off a seven-point swing for Wofford that would effectively ice the match with the Terriers ahead, 17-7. The Spartans attempted to chip away, but Wofford remained in control to counter each UNCG scoring effort. Sarah Barham's kill brought about match point, where she then teamed with Mary Emily Morgan on a tandem block to seal the match, 25-11, and make history with her 400^th career block. Wofford committed just one error in the final set with a .452 hitting clip while holding UNCG to a -.056 mark at eight errors.
 
The triumph sets up a clash tomorrow night between the conference's top dogs. Wofford travels to Charleston, South Carolina to face The Citadel at 7:00 p.m. The Bulldogs are still undefeated on the season at 17-0, and with both teams sitting at 5-0 in the SoCon, the match will determine the last unbeaten team remaining in league play. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.