ETSU handed first loss conference in SoCon play

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Oct. 12, 2022) – It was a punch-for-punch battle until the finish, but ETSU volleyball’s win streak ends at seven matches.

The Bucs’ hold on the Southern Conference lead remains intact, but in-state rival Chattanooga supplied ETSU its first conference loss on Wednesday with a come-from-behind 3-2 victory inside Brooks Gym.

ETSU dropped to 12-7 overall and 6-1 with its first SoCon loss, but remains atop the conference standings with all other teams carrying at least two losses. Meanwhile, the rival Mocs improved to 9-12 and 4-3 to remain above .500 in the SoCon.

The Bucs jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but a couple of tight set wins for Chattanooga kept the visitors alive. The Mocs finished the job in the fifth set, using a 6-0 run to force set point at 14-9. The Bucs stayed alive for two more points, but an attack error by ETSU clinched the match for the Mocs.

Despite the loss, four Bucs compiled double-digit kill numbers and four more did the same in the dig category. Sophomore setter Caroline Dykes (Flower Mound, Texas) had a career-high 56 assists, surpassing her previous high of 53, while also adding 10 digs for her fifth double-double this season.

Freshman Brianna Cantrell (Appleton, Wis.) also had a double-double with 14 kills and 12 digs, which marked the second double-double of her career.

Senior Lundyn Coffman (Nolensville, Tenn.) was the team’s point leader with 16 kills and six block assists, while newcomers Amanda Lowe (Blacksburg, Va.) and Whitley Rammel (Ft. Recovery, Ohio) tacked on 15 kills. All three hitters went above .300 in hitting percentage, led by Rammel at .393, while Coffman had an impressive .552 kill percentage on 29 attempts.

Graduate libero Taylor Roberts (Sneads, Fla.) led the way with a season-high 22 digs, followed by Cantrell with 12, Dykes with 10 and sophomore defensive specialist Haley Sanders (Brentwood, Tenn.) with 10.

ETSU had a 70-59 advantage in kills and a .240 to .207 advantage in attack percentage but were harmed by 13 service errors and 11 reception errors. Additionally, ETSU hit at least .200 in the first three sets, but averaged .156 in the final two sets.

The first set started with a powerful kill by Cantrell, then the teams traded 5-0 runs to swap the lead. Leading 15-11 at the media break, the Bucs came back out and finished things off, out-hitting its rival .355 to .125 in the frame.

The next set started with a similar feel, but ended much closer. The Bucs used a pair of 4-0 spurts to take a 15-10 lead at the media timeout. The second 4-0 run grew two-fold, putting the Bucs ahead 17-10 before a block halted things and a started a 5-0 run for Chattanooga. With the playing field level and the set up for grabs, ETSU scored the final three points to spoil a potential set point for UTC to win 26-24.

The final three sets marked the comeback for Chattanooga, as they survived the third set with a 25-21 win and swung momentum back to their side in the fourth set with a thrilling 28-26 set win. The fifth set was neck and neck until the scoreboard hit double digits, as the Mocs pulled away with a late 6-0 run.

The Bucs end the first half of SoCon play on Saturday, Oct. 15 as they host the defending conference champions, The Citadel. First serve is set for 4 p.m. inside Brooks Gym.

For more information on Buccaneer volleyball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the volleyball page.