October 2, 2025

Volleyball meets with Anderson looking for first win in two years

Following their first home win of the season, Carson-Newman gears up for a big-time road match against Anderson, who was projected just above them in the conference preseason poll.

Carson-Newman

12-3,3-3 SAC

Anderson (S.C.)

8-4,3-1 SAC

Final	1	2	3	T
Carson-Newman 12-3,3-3 SAC	17	21	21	0
Anderson (S.C.) 8-4,3-1 SAC	25	25	25	3

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - Following their first home win of the season, Carson-Newman gears up for a big-time road match against Anderson, who was projected just above them in the conference preseason poll.

Carson-Newman volleyball was searching for its first win at home in 300 days, and they got it dominantly, sweeping the Emory and Henry Wasps with a fifteen-point victory in set three. The Eagles logged 40 team digs, with three players recording eight or more digs, including team captain Trinity Hafey , who was also flawless from the service line while dishing three assists.

Carson-Newman matched the best blocking team in the conference with six blocks apiece to hold E&H to a .101 hitting percentage. Hurst, Cherry, and Bella Cardello were all tied for the team lead with three blocks each.

Addie Smith was the team's leader on the attacking front. The junior put away ten kills while hitting .450 throughout the three sets with a pair of blocks and a service ace to tie a bow on the match. The Eagles threw punches from every side of the court on Tuesday, with Ahsmuhs (9), Dziczkowski (8), Hurst (8), and Smith (10) all grabbing sizable kill counts in the match. Blair Cherry was able to provide on the setting front with 35 assists. Every Eagle that took over 10 swings in the match hit above .230.

Carson-Newman has had an incredibly good start to the season. With a 12-2 overall record, the Eagles' only two losses of the year have come to teams projected ahead of them in the conference preseason poll (Lenoir-Rhyne and Wingate). This next contest against Anderson will be a test of how accurate the SAC preseason poll was. We have also now entered the second half of the season for C-N; with 27 games in the regular season, Carson-Newman visits Anderson for the 15th match of the year.

The Trojans volleyball program was picked to finish third in the SAC preseason poll. The Trojans finished third overall last season and advanced to the semifinals in the SAC Championships, boasting an overall record of 19-11 and a conference record of 13-5. Anderson's season concluded at the NCAA Southeast Regional Tournament Quarterfinals, where they lost to Flagler in three sets.

The Trojans did a good job against conference opponents last season. Anderson finished second in the conference in kills per set (13.19) and was in the top three in accuracy, hitting .202 on the season. They also ranked second in assists per set with 12.39. Although Anderson had a hefty offense, the defense struggled to stack up against SAC opponents. Anderson was bottom of the conference in blocks per set and 10th in digs per set (15.73).

Four Anderson players were named to the SAC all-conference teams in 2024. Senior Brantley Chipley, sophomore Ellie Nieporte and sophomore Ava Reeves have been named to the Second Team All-Conference, and sophomore Emily Campbell was named to the Third Team All-Conference. Chipley had 279 kills at the conclusion of last season and was fourth in the SAC in hitting percentage (.324) while tacking on .82 blocks per set. Reeves was second in the conference in kills per set (3.25), and Campbell was 18th in the conference in blocks per set (.77) and hit .294 on the year (8th in the SAC). Nieporte led the league in assists per set (10.44) and was 24th in the nation in that category. Chipley and Nieporte were named to the AVCA All-Southeast region first team, while Reeves was an honorable mention. All three players earned AVCA All-American Honorable mention for their efforts in 2024.

This season, Anderson was projected to be third in the preseason poll but has found some early-season struggles. At 7-4 on the year, the Trojans lost their first two games of the season to [RV] Hillsdale and Florida Southern in five sets before picking up their first win over Saint Leo University. Anderson has also lost to Palm Beach Atlantic and opened their SAC schedule with a 0-3 loss to Lenoir-Rhyne.

Since the loss against the Bears on September 16th, though, the Trojans have been rolling. They pulled off a reverse sweep at Emmanuel and have won four straight coming into this game. They grabbed their first two SAC wins last week, sweeping both Coker and Mars Hill. This game between C-N and Anderson will be the Trojans' first home SAC game.

The Trojans have shown significant improvement on defense this season. Anderson is second in the SAC in digs per set (18.33) with a spark lit by the fresh face in Jamie Juhnevicz, who ranks 8th in the conference with 4.14 digs per set. Nieporte has continued to lead on the setting front, ranking third in the conference in assists/set (7.98) behind Blair Cherry. As a team, the Trojans rank second in the conference in that mark. They have hit well this season too, notching a .198 clip (good for 4th in the SAC) and are stringing together 13.38 kills per set (3rd in the SAC).

Freshman outside Mikaylah Hedlund has emerged as a weapon for Anderson. The freshman is averaging a team-leading 2.98 kills per set and is 9th among SAC opponents. She headlines an Anderson attack that sees six players average above two kills per set.

This will be the 27th all-time matchup between the Trojans and the Eagles. This series dates back to 1992, when Anderson won the first all-time matchup between these two teams in two sets. Currently, Anderson holds the edge in the series, beating the Eagles in 20 games and losing 16 times. They have historically performed well at home, winning 9 of 13 matches played in the Abney Athletic Center. Anderson has dominated the Eagles in recent history, taking seven of the last ten from Carson-Newman.

In the most recent matchup against the Trojans, the Eagles suffered a five-set loss inside of Holt Fieldhouse that took extra points in the fifth to settle. Both teams fought tooth and nail for a victory, but it was the 20 extra kills from Anderson that would land the deciding blow. Carson-Newman did a great job on the block, with 13 to Anderson's 7. The Trojans were led by graduate student Libby Nieporte (sister of Ellie), who slammed 23 kills home while Ava Reeves notched 20, and Brantly Chipley put 16 away. Ellie Nieporte was unreal, with 63 assists and 14 digs, while Sophie Deese picked up 22 digs.

For Carson-Newman, the seniors in Taylor Adams and Taylor Keeran led the kill department with 14 and 13, respectively, while Maddie Hurst followed with 8 kills and piled on 10 blocks. This game was the first time an Eagle had put up double-digit blocks since Keeran did so in 2022. Trinity Hafey led the back row with 18 digs, and Blair Cherry notched one of her many career double-doubles with 44 assists and 12 digs.

A key matchup to watch on the court will be the battle of these setters. Blair Cherry and Ellie Nieporte have cemented themselves in the record books at their respective institutions, ranking within the top 10 all-time in assists. The junior Boca Raton native Nietporte hit the 1,500 assist mark in her game against Converse on September 24. Cherry has done much of the same this season, hitting the 2,000 assist mark against North Greenville on September 13th. Cherry currently ranks second in the SAC in assists per set (9.51), and Nieporte owns the spot just below her at 7.98.