College of Charleston
Georgia
Volleyball Falls to Georgia in Tournament Finale
9/7/2014 12:58:00 AM | Volleyball
ATHENS, GA. – College of Charleston volleyball fell on Saturday night to the University of Georgia in the final match of the 2014 Bulldog Invitational, 3-0 (25-23, 25-21, 25-14), in front of 604 fans at the Ramsey Center.
Melissa Morello and Cara Howley each had 10 kills, while senior libero Andi Zbojniewicz provided 14 digs. It wasn't enough though as the Bulldogs rode a .340 team attacking percentage to victory – claiming the home-hosted tournament title.
The Cougars (3-4) played extremely well in the opening stanza, taking a 4-3 lead early on through kills from junior team captain Melissa Morello and pre-season all-conference selection Sloane White. After the Bulldogs took a 12-9 lead, kills from White and Morello, plus an ace from senior setter Kallie McKown once again brought the Cougars level. As both teams traded side-outs, The College managed to take a brief 17-16 lead through a Kari Fidelholtz put-away. Then, with the game tied at 22-22, the Bulldogs rattled off two straight to force a set point. A Cara Howley kill momentarily provided the Cougars with life, but a Georgia side-out on the ensuing sequence sealed the Bulldogs game one victory.
The second set was a more straightforward affair as the Cougars went down by as many as eight mid-way through the game. Always resilient, the Cougars fought their way back as back-to-back kills from Howley brought them to within two at 23-21. That was as close as CofC would come, however, as the Bulldogs closed out the second set, 25-21.
Down two sets to none, the Cougars struggled to crack the Georgia safe in the third frame, falling behind early and never really recovering, eventually falling 25-14 to close out the match.
Sophomore middle Maddie Hills and senior righ-side Cara Howley were selected to the all-tournament team.
Up next for the Cougars is a Tuesday showdown with cross-town rivals Charleston Southern, at the Buc Dome in North Charleston, where first serve is set for 7:00 p.m.
CONNECTING WITH THE COUGARS
For all of the latest news and information on Cougar volleyball, you can follow the program @CofCVolleyball and @CofCSports or follow the team on Facebook.
