UNCP volleyball splits Sunday matches at Cedarville Invitational
Sep. 5—CEDARVILLE, Ohio — The UNC Pembroke volleyball team struggled offensively hitting -.051 at the net against Palm Beach Atlantic and fell 25-17, 25-21, 25-10 to the Sailfish in the opening match of the Cedarville Invitational on Saturday inside the Callan Athletic Center. UNCP hit .213 from the net against Shepherd in the evening portion of the invitational on the way to a 25-12, 25-18, 25-19 victory to close out weekend competition.
The Braves fell to 0-5 all-time against Palm Beach Atlantic, but it was the first meeting since 2013. It was the first meeting against Shepherd as the Braves finished the weekend 3-1.
The Braves will be back in action on Friday for the UC Invitational in Charleston, West Virginia. UNCP will face Fayetteville State (2-2) in the opening contest on Friday at 9.30 a.m. inside the Wehrle Athletic Arena.
vs. Palm Beach Atlantic
Palm Beach Atlantic (3-0) hit .276 from the net in the opening set and took a quick 6-1 lead after an attack error from UNC Pembroke. The Braves rallied for three straight points to cut the deficit back to 19-16, but the Sailfish finished the set on 6-1 advantage to take the opening set 25-17.
PBA got another quick start taking 8-3 lead after a kill from Kaileigh Ammons, but UNCP scored the next five points to tie the score at 8 apiece. Palm Beach Atlantic looked to be in control taking a 24-16 lead after an attack error from UNCP. The Braves chipped away with five consecutive points, but an ill-timed service error stopped the run and gave the Sailfish the set, 25-21.
Palm Beach Atlantic hit a game-best .650 from the net and took a large 15-5 lead with a UNC Pembroke attack error. UNCP struggled to get an offensive rhythm logging just five kills in the set as PBA won the set 25-10 to clinch the match.
Vanja Przulj had 10 kills, six digs and four aces for the Braves, Tyler Patterson had nine digs and six assists and Katelynn Swain had three blocks.
vs. Shepherd
UNC Pembroke hit .375 in the opening set and took an 11-5 lead with a Shepherd attack error. The Braves pushed their lead out to 21-11 after a 7-2 scoring surge, and took the opening set 25-12 after scoring the final three points of the set.
Shepherd (2-2) got into an offensive rhythm and took a 13-9 lead after a kill from Joi Fairweather. UNCP tied the score at 15 after a kill from Ruby Countryman, and the Braves took the set 25-18 after scoring 10 of the final 13 points.
A quick surge gave the Rams a 7-1 lead after a kill from Joi Fairweather. The Braves scored six straight points to tie the score at 10, and then rattled off five more points to push their lead out to 17-14. Shepherd hit .188 from the net, but another five consecutive points from the Black & Gold proved to be the difference in a 25-19 win.
Przulj had 10 more kills in the nightcap, with four aces. Karagyn Durco had 15 assists and seven digs, Patterson had 11 assists and four aces, Abby Peduzzi had eight kills and seven digs and Kyliegh Coghlan had 10 digs.
Przulj named CC Player of the Week
A stellar opening weekend that helped the UNC Pembroke volleyball team to a 3-1 record at the Cedarville Invitational paved the way for Vanja Przulj to Conference Carolinas Player of the Week honors, league officials announced Tuesday.
A native of Belgrade, Serbia, Przulj started in all four matches and played in all 14 sets. The senior finished the weekend with a team-best 49 kills as well as a team-high 14 service aces. Przulj hit .217 from the net and scored 64.0 points in the four matches.
Przulj logged double-digit kills in all four matches including a weekend-high 15 kills against Cedarville on Friday. She also opened the season with a double-double tallying 14 kills and 12 digs against Glenville State. The senior nearly matched a career-high on services aces twice over the weekend with four aces apiece against Palm Beach Atlantic and Shepherd.
