Cougars Split With Western Kentucky, Alabama Saturday

Saturday, August 25

TD Arena

12:00 PM

College of Charleston

2-0

Western Kentucky

0-2

Western Kentucky

Charleston

Photo by: Michael Wiser

Cougars Split With Western Kentucky, Alabama Saturday

8/25/2018 10:07:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Photo Gallery

CHARLESTON, S.C. --- Senior right side Kennedy Madison (Evansville, Ind.) totaled 29 kills to become the 17^th player in program history to reach the 1,000-kill mark for her career, as the College of Charleston volleyball team split with Western Kentucky (RV, AVCA) and Alabama at the Hampton Inn Charleston/West Ashley CofC Classic in TD Arena on Saturday.

College of Charleston (2-1) opened the day with a 25-23, 25-16, 22-25, 25-20 win over Western Kentucky (0-2), hitting .302 with 59 kills, 55 digs, and 10 blocks. The Cougars fell to Alabama (3-0) in straight sets by scores of 14-25, 22-25, 23-25 to conclude the evening session. Against the Crimson Tide, Charleston totaled 39 kills, 54 digs, and three blocks.

Charleston 3, Western Kentucky 1

The Cougars moved to 2-0 on the young season with a gritty 3-1 win over the Lady Toppers, led by 14 kills and five blocks from Madison. Devon Rachel (Louisville, Ky.) added 17 kills and seven digs, while Lauren Freed (Troy, Ohio) accounted for a double-double with 11 kills and 17 digs. Allison Beckman (Apex, N.C.) dished out a match-high 47 assists to go along with a match-high four service aces.

Mandy Napierala (Rochester, N.Y.) chipped in 10 kills, while McKala Rhodes (Charleston, S.C.) and Logan Manusky (San Diego, Calif.) tallied 11 and 10 digs, respectively.

Rachel Anderson led the way for Western Kentucky with a match-high 18 kills, as Sophia Cerino added 11 kills of her own. Taylor Bebout nearly recorded a double-double with 44 assists and nine digs; Emma Kowalkowski and Payton Frederick collected 16 and 10 digs, respectively.

Alabama 3, Charleston 0

Madison continued her torrid start to the season with a match-high 15 kills against Alabama, and surpassed the coveted 1,000-kill plateau late in the third set following back-to-back smashes. Freed chipped in her second double-double of the day with 11 kills and 10 digs, while Rhodes paced all players with 18 digs. Beckman and Rachel recorded 33 assists and 10 digs, respectively.

The Crimson Tide placed three players in double figures in kills, led by Ginger Perinar with 13. Hayley McSparin accounted for a double-double with 11 kills and 15 digs, while Doris Carter added 10 kills. Mylana Byrd and Meghan Neelon dished out 22 and 21 assists, respectively. Mahalia Swink and Kaylee Thomas each tallied 10 digs.

Madison and Beckman were each named to the all-tournament team. They were joined by Emily Butters of Missouri State; Anderson of Western Kentucky; and McSparin, Swink, and Cidavia Hall (MVP) of Alabama.

The Cougars are back in action next Friday, August 31 at the University of Kentucky's Bluegrass Battle. Charleston will open the weekend with two matches on Friday against host Kentucky at 12:00 pm, and Kansas at 6:30 pm.