Catawba grabs key win at Anderson

ANDERSON, SC -- Catawba dropped the opening set then stormed back to take the next three to post a key regional win over host Anderson in South Atlantic Conference volleyball action on Friday night at the Abney Center. The Catawba Indians claimed the match by the scores of 18-25, 25-18, 25-22 and 25-20 to improve to 13-12 overall and 8-9 in the SAC. The Trojans fall to 18-13 and 8-9.

Catawba entered the match ranked seventh in the region with Anderson ninth. Eight teams will comprise the regional field. The Lady Indians also secured no worse than the #6-seed in the upcoming league tournament to be held at Catawba’s Goodman Gym next weekend.

Kaitlyn Whitmer (Ferrum, VA/Franklin Co. HS) posted a double-double with 12 kills and 13 digs, while freshman Emily Richardson (Salem, VA/Salem HS) delivered 10 kills to lead Catawba. Freshman Anna Logan (Yadkinville, NC/Mt. Tabor HS) posted eight kills with six blocks, with Shay Meeks (Kings Mountain, NC/Kings Mountain HS) totaling nine kills and four blocks.

After dropping the opening set Catawba fell behind 3-0 to start set two, but a kill and block by MacKenzie White (Salisbury, NC/Carson HS) got the Lady Indians rolling. A kill by Richardson and an Anderson error put Catawba ahead 14-9. The Trojans rallied as Jamie Lancaster had three straight kills to help AU pull even at 14-all. The Lady Indians never went behind and a five-point run which included a pair of kills from Whitmer put Catawba up 23-17. Whitmer and White killed off the final two points.

The Lady Indians rolled to an 18-8 lead in set three and held on for the win. Richardson had four kills and Whitmer three in the early spurt. Anderson rallied and after an ace by Marlie Bryant was able to tie the set at 21-all. Whitmer got Catawba back on top with consecutive kills and a Richardson kill upped the lead to 24-21. Following a kill by Tori Calhoun, Whitmer used her sixth kill of the set for the final point.

A six-point run, capped with an ace by Richardson, helped Catawba grab an 18-12 lead in the final set. Lancaster had two kills and an ace to help the Trojans rally. A kill by Bryant and an error by Catawba cut the margin to 21-20. Anderson suffered four errors down the stretch, including one on a combo block from Richardson and White that gave the Lady Indians a 23-21 edge. Two attack errors closed out the match.

Lancaster tallied a match-high 17 kills and added 16 digs for the Trojans. Bryant followed with 10 kills and had 11 digs. Libero Adria Mullaney recorded 25 digs.

Libero Jenny Young (Roanoke, VA/Patrick Henry HS) posted 24 digs with setter Jordan Raye (Boonville, NC/Starmount HS) handing our 37 assists. White delivered eight kills with nine digs and three blocks. For the match, Catawba registered nine blocks to just one for the Trojans. The Lady Indians hit at 28% after the opening set.