September 16, 2025

Volleyball defies odds in reverse sweep of Lee to stay undefeated

In the final non-conference match of the regular season, the Eagles rally from two crushing set one and two losses to topple the Lady Flames in their first reverse sweep since 2023.

Carson-Newman

10-0

Lee

4-2

Final	1	2	3	4	5	T
Carson-Newman 10-0	17	14	25	25	16	3
Lee 4-2	25	25	22	19	14	2

Cat Collins Full Interview

CLEVELAND, Tenn. – In the final non-conference match of the regular season, the Eagles rally from two crushing set one and two losses to topple the Lady Flames in their first reverse sweep since 2023.

"They were a big flashy offense so they are going to get big points," head coach Cat Collins said. "We told them there was nothing to lose here. This game could go on and we can change it or we can be a victim to it."

It looked bleak for the Eagles in the first two sets of the match. Carson-Newman was especially well out of sorts in set one, hitting .054 in the first set. The Eagles couldn't seem to find the hardwood with six errors and just eight kills to suffer a first-set loss 25-17. The Lee front lived up to expectations. With eight hitters on the squad averaging a kill per set, the C-N defense didn't know where to look, as five Lady Flames had multiple kills. They were finding the floor early and often, hitting .406 in the first set.

In set two, the Lady Flames dominated again. Their flashy offense was outstanding, grabbing 15 kills in the second set and hitting a .406 clip yet again. Despite the lack of block from either side, Lee was stout on defense with 17 digs in the second to extinguish C-N's chances in the second set. Carson-Newman got out-served in the second set, with three aces falling in favor of Lee. The Eagles fell in their worst set loss since October 14-25.

The Eagles would take a private break in between sets two and three to huddle in the locker room, and they came out a different team. Raychel Ehlers would trade with Trinity Hafey in the libero jersey, and the Eagles offense got to work. It was a rollercoaster of a set with seven tied scores and four lead changes. Finally, the Lady Flames defense broke, with just seven digs in the third set. Carson-Newman would grab ahold of the struggling defenders, and Maddie Hurst got to work. Well-placed shots from the sophomore gave her five in the set, and she combined with Cherry for two momentum-swinging blocks. Despite the Lady Flames outkilling the Eagles in the third set, Carson-Newman would take advantage of the seven errors from Lee. The Eagles won set three 25-22.

The train kept rolling after that, but it was a dogfight in the early goings of set four. The score was knotted at 9 before the reigning SAC Offensive Player of the Week, Emerson Ahsmuhs, exploded. The sophomore was relentless, grabbing eight kills in set four helped by 11 assists from Blair Cherry. Annie Dziczkowski joined the party too, with four kills to help the Eagles take Lee to a fifth set. The Lady Flames' four service errors in the fourth frame harmed their momentum greatly, and the Eagles would win, grabbing set four 25-19.

Set five was full of dramatics, but it was C-N who jumped out the early lead. Four early service and attack errors from Lee would give Carson-Newman a 7-3 edge before Christa Fabre would take a timeout. Lee would chip away out of the timeout and utilize five different arms to tie the score at 13 before Cat Collins would take a timeout of her own. Dziczkowski was cool in the big moment, notching a massive kill out of the break before Lee's Jasmine Terry would answer with one of her own. In tragic fashion, Naomi Hockless would send a service error long of the back line to give Carson-Newman a 15-14 lead, and Dsiczkowski met the moment yet again. The sophomore slammed her 14^th kill to the hardwood off the dish from Addie Smith, and the Eagles would win set five 16-14 in true comeback kids fashion.

"Didn't love the beginning of that obviously, but I'm just proud. This team fights so hard," head coach Cat Collins said following the win. "That's a great team, and a great offense. They really challenged us, but I'm proud of this team for fighting."

Ahsmuhs who tied her career high in kills in the five-set match with 22 and led the way in hitting percentage as well, hitting .360 on the night. She also carried the Eagles defense with 21 digs, good for her sixth double-double of the season. Cherry dished 43 assists despite a struggling C-N offense in the first three frames and inches closer to the top five all-time in career assists. Her 10 digs give her her 33^rd career double-double. Dziczkowski landed a season high 14 kills. Bella Cardello continued her outstanding season with five blocks.

"It's huge to have outsides that are good, but we have outsides that are great which is really rare, especially to have two," said Collins.

The Eagles now get to walk into their home gymnasium for the first time in 2025 undefeated at 10-0. They will meet with Lenoir-Rhyne in their second SAC matchup of the season at 7:00 PM on Friday, September 19, 2025 at Holt Fieldhouse.