Cougar Volleyball Finds Success at Coastal Spring Tournament
4/8/2008 4:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The College of Charleston Women's Volleyball team continued their strong spring season with a dominant performance in winning the 2008 Coastal Carolina Spring Tournament. The Cougars faced off against the host Chanticleers, the Citadel Bulldogs, and the Seahawks of North Carolina-Wilmington.
CofC opened against Wilmington in fine fashion, as Emily Sawin (So. OH, New Lenox, IL) sparked a potent Cougars offense. The College of Charleston posted a sizzling .548 team hitting percentage with 19 kills on only 31 attempts. Sawin chipped in five kills while Ginny Phillips (Fr. OH, Durham, NC) swung hard to finish with five kills on only six swings in game one, which the Cougars won running away 25-9. Game Two was a tight affair, as the Seahawks forced long rallies, several of which led to Cougar hitting errors. Outstanding defense carried the College, led by Kenni Bowling's (Fr. DS, Greenville, SC) four Game Two digs and two block assists each from Sawin, Phillips, Cole Dawley (Fr. S, Charleston, SC), and Whitney Russell (Fr. OH, Decatur, GA). After briefly falling behind 24-22, CofC rallied to win on a Dawley kill 27-25. Game Two was highlighted by a spring-record 31 digs from College of Charleston, led by Paige Johnson (Fr. Lib, Sleepy Hollow, IL) with 13 saves over two games.
Next up for the Cougars was the Bulldogs of the Citadel, a perennial Southern Conference opponent. This was the first spring meeting in several years for the two teams, and it carried all the typical intensity of a conference match played in the fall, rather than a spring exhibition. Though the Citadel turned in a characteristically scrappy performance, strong passing from the College was quickly turned into a hard-hitting offense as the Cougars hit .467 in a 25-12 Game One win before prevailing 25-17 in Game Two. Cole Dawley led all players with seven digs in the match, with Brooke Truxillo (So. DS/S, Roswell, GA) chipping in five of her own. Russell and Sawin produced nearly identical lines in the match, with each contributing seven kills; Sawin hit .167 and Russell swung for a .333 percentage.
Pool play finished with a rematch against Coastal Carolina, facing off for the third time in a week after posting two resounding wins in Charleston on April 6th. Game One was nearly over before it began, with CofC racing out to a 14-5 lead off the hot hand of Whitney Russell. Dawley supplied the feeds off of stellar serve receive by CofC's quartet of passers. Early floor defense from Dawley led Ginny Phillips to accumulate four assists for the Cougars off of five Dawley digs. Once Charleston settled in, they cruised to a 25-17 victory off a robust .276 hitting percentage. The second stanza was an entirely different affair, as extended rallies allowed Coastal Carolina the chance to stay in the game and they took a 15-11 lead. Charleston played strongly the rest of the way, but was unable to draw any closer and fell 25-18 in Game Two. Though splitting the match, CofC took the #1 seed into the playoff round courtesy of its 5-1 record. Whitney Russell hit a match-high .381 with nine kills as Sawin registered four and Phillips two. Johnson, Russell, and Dawley each pulled eight digs over the two games.
Following a break for lunch, Wilmington awaited the Cougars in a rematch from the day's first match. The rematch was characterized by a complete offensive performance by CofC, as they notched 38 kills good for a .269 hitting percentage in a 25-18, 24-26, 15-8 win over the Seahawks. The Cougars again benefitted from Sawin's steady play. The 2006 SoCon Freshman of the Year has adjusted well to the outside hitter position, tallying eight kills against only one error to lead a fine offensive display. Russell cranked 12 kills in the win and Phillips followed up with eight of her own. After faltering on game point in Game Two, the College of Charleston came storming back to lead 12-4 in the deciding game before running away with it 15-8. Dawley had a solid 29 assists to go with 11 digs.
After coming back late to dispatch the Citadel, Coastal Carolina met the Cougars in the finals for the teams' fourth match in 2008. This meeting on the Chanticleers home court was all Cougars from the get-go, winning two straight 25-15 and 24-14. Statistics aside, the College of Charleston turned in their best overall performance of the day, as the Cougars posted a hitting percentage of .284 behind dominating swings from all spots on the floor. Russell had a match-high 12 kills for a .409 percentage while Sawin tallied eight on only 17 attempts. Defense was the real story, with Paige Johnson leading the charge with 15 digs, Sawin holding form with 12, and Dawley saving nine to go with her 25 assists. Johnson was joined in the back by Truxillo's three digs and Bowling, who continued to pass nails all match long. Cougar veterans Annie Uthe and Tiffany Blum had a strong performance as well, culminating productive days with .333 and .400 hitting percentages, respectively. In the final five points, Blum missed a chance at an errorless day, as her hitting error late in Game Two was the first of an otherwise unblemished tournament where she finished with 16 kills on a .556 clip.
“I was very happy with our overall performance this past weekend. We are really starting to play at a high level for longer periods of time. This team is still very young but starting to show signs of maturing individually and as a team. We have one more week of practice before we play our toughest competition this spring. This will be a great opportunity to see how far we have come is a short period of time” said coach Jason Kepner.
The Cougars will finish their 2008 spring season with a trip April 12th to Clemson University to face the 2007 ACC Champion Tigers and the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders, who are the defending Sun Belt Champions and a 2007 Sweet 16 Participant.
Statistics
Sawin, Emily 36 kills 16 errors 83 attempts .241 37 digs 2 BA
Russell, Whitney 49 kills 15 errors 104 attempts .327 38 digs 4 BA
Phillips, Ginny 24 kills 19 errors 70 attempts .072 10 digs 3 BA 7 A
Johnson, Paige 42 digs
Truxillo, Brooke 8 digs
Bowling, Kenni 9 digs
Dawley, Cole 18 kills 4 errors 36 attempts .389 40 digs 4 BA 1 BS 105 A
CofC opened against Wilmington in fine fashion, as Emily Sawin (So. OH, New Lenox, IL) sparked a potent Cougars offense. The College of Charleston posted a sizzling .548 team hitting percentage with 19 kills on only 31 attempts. Sawin chipped in five kills while Ginny Phillips (Fr. OH, Durham, NC) swung hard to finish with five kills on only six swings in game one, which the Cougars won running away 25-9. Game Two was a tight affair, as the Seahawks forced long rallies, several of which led to Cougar hitting errors. Outstanding defense carried the College, led by Kenni Bowling's (Fr. DS, Greenville, SC) four Game Two digs and two block assists each from Sawin, Phillips, Cole Dawley (Fr. S, Charleston, SC), and Whitney Russell (Fr. OH, Decatur, GA). After briefly falling behind 24-22, CofC rallied to win on a Dawley kill 27-25. Game Two was highlighted by a spring-record 31 digs from College of Charleston, led by Paige Johnson (Fr. Lib, Sleepy Hollow, IL) with 13 saves over two games.
Next up for the Cougars was the Bulldogs of the Citadel, a perennial Southern Conference opponent. This was the first spring meeting in several years for the two teams, and it carried all the typical intensity of a conference match played in the fall, rather than a spring exhibition. Though the Citadel turned in a characteristically scrappy performance, strong passing from the College was quickly turned into a hard-hitting offense as the Cougars hit .467 in a 25-12 Game One win before prevailing 25-17 in Game Two. Cole Dawley led all players with seven digs in the match, with Brooke Truxillo (So. DS/S, Roswell, GA) chipping in five of her own. Russell and Sawin produced nearly identical lines in the match, with each contributing seven kills; Sawin hit .167 and Russell swung for a .333 percentage.
Pool play finished with a rematch against Coastal Carolina, facing off for the third time in a week after posting two resounding wins in Charleston on April 6th. Game One was nearly over before it began, with CofC racing out to a 14-5 lead off the hot hand of Whitney Russell. Dawley supplied the feeds off of stellar serve receive by CofC's quartet of passers. Early floor defense from Dawley led Ginny Phillips to accumulate four assists for the Cougars off of five Dawley digs. Once Charleston settled in, they cruised to a 25-17 victory off a robust .276 hitting percentage. The second stanza was an entirely different affair, as extended rallies allowed Coastal Carolina the chance to stay in the game and they took a 15-11 lead. Charleston played strongly the rest of the way, but was unable to draw any closer and fell 25-18 in Game Two. Though splitting the match, CofC took the #1 seed into the playoff round courtesy of its 5-1 record. Whitney Russell hit a match-high .381 with nine kills as Sawin registered four and Phillips two. Johnson, Russell, and Dawley each pulled eight digs over the two games.
Following a break for lunch, Wilmington awaited the Cougars in a rematch from the day's first match. The rematch was characterized by a complete offensive performance by CofC, as they notched 38 kills good for a .269 hitting percentage in a 25-18, 24-26, 15-8 win over the Seahawks. The Cougars again benefitted from Sawin's steady play. The 2006 SoCon Freshman of the Year has adjusted well to the outside hitter position, tallying eight kills against only one error to lead a fine offensive display. Russell cranked 12 kills in the win and Phillips followed up with eight of her own. After faltering on game point in Game Two, the College of Charleston came storming back to lead 12-4 in the deciding game before running away with it 15-8. Dawley had a solid 29 assists to go with 11 digs.
After coming back late to dispatch the Citadel, Coastal Carolina met the Cougars in the finals for the teams' fourth match in 2008. This meeting on the Chanticleers home court was all Cougars from the get-go, winning two straight 25-15 and 24-14. Statistics aside, the College of Charleston turned in their best overall performance of the day, as the Cougars posted a hitting percentage of .284 behind dominating swings from all spots on the floor. Russell had a match-high 12 kills for a .409 percentage while Sawin tallied eight on only 17 attempts. Defense was the real story, with Paige Johnson leading the charge with 15 digs, Sawin holding form with 12, and Dawley saving nine to go with her 25 assists. Johnson was joined in the back by Truxillo's three digs and Bowling, who continued to pass nails all match long. Cougar veterans Annie Uthe and Tiffany Blum had a strong performance as well, culminating productive days with .333 and .400 hitting percentages, respectively. In the final five points, Blum missed a chance at an errorless day, as her hitting error late in Game Two was the first of an otherwise unblemished tournament where she finished with 16 kills on a .556 clip.
“I was very happy with our overall performance this past weekend. We are really starting to play at a high level for longer periods of time. This team is still very young but starting to show signs of maturing individually and as a team. We have one more week of practice before we play our toughest competition this spring. This will be a great opportunity to see how far we have come is a short period of time” said coach Jason Kepner.
The Cougars will finish their 2008 spring season with a trip April 12th to Clemson University to face the 2007 ACC Champion Tigers and the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders, who are the defending Sun Belt Champions and a 2007 Sweet 16 Participant.
Statistics
Sawin, Emily 36 kills 16 errors 83 attempts .241 37 digs 2 BA
Russell, Whitney 49 kills 15 errors 104 attempts .327 38 digs 4 BA
Phillips, Ginny 24 kills 19 errors 70 attempts .072 10 digs 3 BA 7 A
Johnson, Paige 42 digs
Truxillo, Brooke 8 digs
Bowling, Kenni 9 digs
Dawley, Cole 18 kills 4 errors 36 attempts .389 40 digs 4 BA 1 BS 105 A
Players Mentioned
MB
/ VolleyballDS
/ Volleyball
S/OH
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ Volleyball
RS
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
DS/S
/ VolleyballJohn Groce Introductory Press Conference 4/1/26
Friday, April 03
Amanda Butler Introductory Press Conference 4/1/26
Friday, April 03
On the Prowl with Charleston Athletics: Adrian Anderson, Women's Golf
Wednesday, March 18
On the Prowl with Charleston Athletics: Maggie Mrowka, Softball
Wednesday, March 11
