UNCP volleyball defeats Francis Marion, advances to CC semifinals
Nov. 18—CHARLESTON, S.C. — The UNC Pembroke volleyball team registered 11 aces and hit .236 from the net on the way to a 3-1 (18-25, 25-7, 25-18, 25-20) victory over Francis Marion in the quarterfinals round of the Conference Carolinas Tournament on Friday inside the North Charleston Athletic Center.
The Braves (20-13) advance to the semifinals and will face Mount Olive on Saturday. The setback for the Patriots (16-16) marks the second consecutive loss to the Black & Gold this season.
The Braves now move on to the semifinal round of the Conference Carolinas Tournament. UNCP will face Mount Olive on Saturday at 5 p.m. at the North Charleston Athletic Center in Charleston, S.C.
Francis Marion scored three straight points to take an early 10-7 lead in the opening set. UNC Pembroke chipped away at its deficit, 19-16, with a kill from Katelynn Swain, but the Patriots hit .273 from the net and did not relinquish the lead, winning 25-18.
In the second set, Tyler Patterson's service ace pushed the UNC Pembroke lead out to 10-2. The Braves hit a match-high .400 from the net and stayed in control of the set with a kill from Emma Fraidenburg to give the Braves a 23-7 lead, and they won 25-7.
A trio of points for FMU gave the Patriots an early 8-7 lead in the third set with a UNCP attack error. The Braves tied up the score and then took a 13-11 advantage with a Francis Marion attack error. The Black & Gold hit .308 from the net and scored nine of the final 11 points to win 25-18 and take a lead to the fourth set.
Francis Marion took control of the fourth set early, jumping out to an 8-5 lead with a kill from Kaylee Gillespie. A Vanja Przulj kill sparked the UNCP offense who went on a 6-1 run to take an 18-14 lead. The Patriots tied the score at 18 apiece with a Madilyn Gartner kill, but the Braves closed out the set on an 7-2 run to win 25-20 and clinch the match.
Przulj had 17 kills and 15 digs for UNCP, Fraidenburg had 10 kills and two blocks, Abby Peduzzi had 10 kills, Katie Pressley had 45 assists, 12 digs and three aces, Kyleigh Coghlan had 12 digs, Ruby Countryman had two blocks, Swain had two blocks and two aces and Patterson had three aces.
