UNCW volleyball team earns historic first bid to NCAA Tournament
HARRISONBURG, VA (UNCW) – Nine kills and five blocks from freshman Anna Moss helped UNCW sweep College of Charleston, 3-0 (25-15, 25-11, 25-14), in the championship game of the Colonial Athletic Association tournament and send the Seahawks to the first NCAA tournament for the first time in program history.
UNCW improved to 24-7 while CofC dropped to 20-13. The Seahawks made their second appearance in the CAA finals, the last coming in 1988.
Moss led five Seahawks with six or more kills and UNCW held the Cougars to -.022 hitting for the match.
Meredith Peacock, who was named tournament MVP and Nicole Lott added seven kills apiece while Peacock chipped in five blocks and a pair of service aces. Lott, meanwhile, finished with six digs and four blocks. UNCW outblocked the Cougars, 10-2, and out hit them, .353 to -.022.
Lindsay Hartmann recorded 12 digs while setters Alyssa Desjardins and Bella Borgiotti doled out 17 and 14 assists, respectively.
Kayla Tronick finished with a match-high 10 kills for CofC. McKala Rhodes posted a match-high 14 digs.
Up next: The Seahawks will find out their first-round opponent and destination on Nov. 29 at 9 p.m. on ESPNU when the NCAA unveils its field of 64.
How it happened: UNCW dominated from the onset and never wavered. The Seahawks posted at least 12 kills in each set and held CofC to seven kills in both the second and third sets. UNCW also set the tone at the net with six blocks in the first set and forced 26 hitting errors by CofC.
Notes: UNCW is just the second number three seed to win the tournament … The Seahawks had 13 or more kills in eight of 11 sets during the tournament … UNCW held opponents to a .102 hitting average during the tournament … At the net, the Seahawks outblocked opponents, 30-12 … Defensively, UNCW was aced just three times while fielding serves cleanly at a 98.4% clip … Head Coach Amy Bambenek improved to 108-105 in seven seasons at the lead … UNCW upped its record to16-2 in sweeps and 6-1 on a neutral court … Peacock hit .421 for the tournament and led all with 20 total blocks … Peacock is UNCW’s first tournament MVP.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Janey Goodman
James Madison
Junior
RS
Jessica Lewis
Towson
Junior
OH
Nicole Lott
UNCW
Junior
OH
Melissa Morello
Coll. of Charleston
Senior
OH
Meredith Peacock*
UNCW
Senior
MB
Kristen Powell
UNCW
Junior
RS
Kayla Tronick
Coll. of Charleston
Senior
MB
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