Carson-Newman Volleyball NCAA Tournament Bound

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman Volleyball Team has reached the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year. This time out, the Lady Eagles want to take it one step farther.

“We’ve been here before,” said Head Coach Shannon Mincey. “We are excited about this opportunity. It is nice for our freshman to experience this trip and really great for our seniors to get another chance to go to the tournament. I know we are all looking forward to spending the weekend together and keeping our focus on our strengths.”

Last season, C-N had the #2 seed but fell to seventh-seeded Lincoln Memorial by a 3-1 score in the first round of the tournament.

This year, the Lady Eagles, who earned the fourth seed after a 22-9 regular season record and a 12-4 mark in South Atlantic Conference play, will face off against league-rival and #5 Catawba in the first round of the tournament. A win friday will mark the first time that a Carson-Newman volleyball team has advanced past the first round of NCAA postseason play.

The Lady Eagles have won 20 matches for the fourth-time in the six-year tenure of Mincey and accomplished the feat seven times during the 2000’s.

The Lady Catawba Indians are 17-11 on the year and finished fourth in the SAC with a 9-7 record. The winner will take on the winner of the Wingate/Tusculum matchup on Saturday evening at 7:00 p.m., in the Southeast Region Semifinals.

“Championship match. Final set. Down by two. Dig Deep. This describes our excitement going into the NCAA Tournament,” commented senior outside hitter Jessica Schachleiter. “It could be the last time we play together so we have to fight hard and finish strong.”

The two teams will face off at 5:00 p.m., at Cuddy Arena on the campus of top-seeded Wingate, which is serving as the host of the tournament for the second year in a row. The Bulldogs won their fourth straight Food Lion SAC Tournament Title last weekend.

“We’re very fortunate to get to play Catawba in the first round of the national tournament,” said senior middle Katie Troyer. “It will be my tenth time playing them so they’re familiar to our team. Likewise, they know our strengths and weaknesses and will definitely give us a tough game. We are excited to play this weekend and have the talent to do incredible things in the tournament.”

Troyer leads the Lady Eagles this season with 2.81 kills per set and is second in blocking with 0.93 blocks per period. She is averaged 13.5 kills per match against the Lady Indians this season with a .326 hitting percentage.

Carson-Newman leads all SAC schools with 273.5 blocks this season, good for 2.40 per set (10th in NCAA Division II). Sophomore right side Nikki James (Cookeville, Tenn.) leads the team and is 22nd in the country in blocks per set with 1.12.

Freshman libero Angelle Hayes (Brentwood, Tenn.) is listed as the 47th player in digs per set in Division II with 4.67. The team is 40th in the land, digging 16.73 opponent attacks per stanza.

“I'm excited about playing Catawba in the first round of the tournament because they are a team that we are familiar with, but also know we cannot take lightly at any moment,” said senior outside hitter Caitlin Schlegel. “These factors will raise the intensity in both teams throughout the match.”

C-N will have to prepare for two of the top five attackers in the SAC as Shay Meeks (3.24) and Kaitlyn Whitmer (2.93) are third and fifth in kills per set, respectively, while libero Mai Zoua Lo led the league this year with 5.76 digs per set.

Visit www.cneagles.com for more information on the upcoming tournament and links to live stats and free live video feeds from all three days of competition.