SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Wofford volleyball team returned home Thursday night to begin a four-match homestand, doing so in style with a straight-set sweep of The Citadel (25-21, 25-17, 25-23) inside the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. Wofford improves to 17-6 (9-2 SoCon) as The Citadel drops to 11-11 (5-6 SoCon).
 
The sweep is Wofford's 12^th of the season, which is just one shy of the program's Division I record of 13 from the 2009 campaign. This is Wofford's first sweep of The Citadel since the 2022 season, during which both the Terrier triumphs were straight-setters. Wofford has improved upon its best SoCon start in history by advancing now to 9-2.
 
The match was closely played offensively with the Bulldogs recording one more kill, 42-41, and three more digs, 71-68. Both teams dished 39 assists, but Wofford claimed the big advantage at the net and at the service line. The Terriers delivered seven aces to the three of the Bulldogs, and Wofford's nine blocks dominated the net with The Citadel only posting three.
 
Bri Mahoney led the offense with 13 kills, adding in 12 digs for a double-double. It's her fifth of the season and seventh of her career. Sarah MacLean added eight kills, and she was errorless on 19 swings for a .421 hitting clip. Mary Emily Morgan posted seven kills, and Bradley Brown added six.
 
Maddy Frazier dished a team-high 17 assists, and Taylor Pecht was right behind with 15. Pecht's total was enough to elevate her over 1,000 assists for her career. Morgan also reached a milestone, recording her 100^th block in the match. Annemarie Rakoski and Brown both posted three blocks with all three of Rakoski's being solo. Morgan tallied two solo blocks, and Mahoney added a pair of denials.
 
Laney Klika led the defensive efforts with 19 digs. Mahoney and Morgan both recorded 12 digs, with Morgan falling just one shy of 1,000 for her career. At the service line, Mahoney, Morgan and Brown each sent home a pair of aces.
 
The first set was tight to begin, tied at six before The Citadel earned back-to-back points for a lead. However, Natalie Arnold posted a kill to kick start a six-point run for a 12-8 advantage. The run saw a Bradley Brown ace and kills by Annemarie Rakoski and Bri Mahoney to highlight it. The Citadel began to chip away with Wofford holding the Bulldogs at arm's length, leading 18-15 later in the set. After a Bulldog error, Mahoney posted a kill, and she added another after a Bulldog point. Arnold's kill made the score 22-18, but The Citadel claimed three-straight points to pull within one at 22-21. However, a service error helped Wofford sideout, and Mahoney delivered an ace before a Sarah MacLean kill to take the set 25-21.
 
The Citadel led 7-6 early in the second set before Maddy Frazier caught the Bulldogs off guard with a dump kill. Mary Emily Morgan followed with back-to-back aces to lead 9-7. After trading points, Wofford used two-straight points with a block by Brown and MacLean for a 16-14 advantage. The Terriers began to pull away from there, as after a Bulldog point the Terriers posted two in a row, and they did the same once more after another Bulldog score. Those last two kills were both by Brown, and The Citadel added one of its own thereafter to cut the margin to 20-17. That would be all The Citadel got for the remainer of the set, as Mahoney tallied a kill, sparking a five-point swing to claim the set. Mahoney took charge with two kills and a solo block in the run. Arnold's kill set up Brown to end the set with her ace at 25-17.
 
Wofford continued the momentum with a 10-5 opening run in set three. The Terriers stayed a touch ahead of the Bulldogs despite their comeback pushes, as Morgan's kill made the lead 16-12. Three-straight Bulldog points pulled them within 16-15, but the Terriers responded with three of the next four points, punctuated by a Rakoski solo denial. After trading some blows, a kill by The Citadel pulled the team back within a point at 21-20. Rakoski struck for another solo block, followed by one from Morgan, and Brown posted a kill for match point at 24-20. The Citadel did not go quietly, though winning the next three points for a 24-23 margin. However, Brown and Mahoney teamed up for a block to ice the match in three sets with a 25-23 set three triumph.
 
Wofford wraps up its weekend by hosting UNCG tomorrow night for match two of a four-match homestand. First serve in Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium is set for 6:00 p.m. against the Spartans.