CHARLESTON, S.C. --- The College of Charleston volleyball team fell to Davidson 3-1 Friday night in their season opener from TD Arena in the CofC Classic.
 
The Cougars came out swinging taking the first set 25-15 and hitting an even .500 and were led by 19 kills from Lexi Wierzbicki on the night, but the Wildcats responded to take three tightly-contest sets and the match in four. Davidson used a balanced attack to overcome the early 1-0 Charleston lead as five Wildcats had eight-or-more kills.
 
QUICK SETS
Final Score: Davidson 3, Charleston 1 (15-25, 25-21, 26-24, 25-21)
Location: Charleston, S.C. (TD Arena)
Records: Davidson (2-0), Charleston (0-1)
 
Key Cougars

• Wierzbicki paced the Cougar attack collecting 19 kills while adding three blocks and a career-high two service aces and nine digs, finishing just one shy of her first double-double. Friday's performance moves Wierzbicki within just 4 kills of 1000 in her collegiate career and two more matches to play in front of the home crowd this weekend.
• Anna Smith added 12 kills and a team-high .313 percentage among Cougars with at least 15 swings.
• Tynley Smeltzer accounted for four of the nine Charleston service aces bringing the junior to 49 in her career. The four aces were also a new career-best single-match performance from the Savannah, Ga., native.
• Sopheea Mink made her Charleston debut with seven kills and three blocks while Cailyn Bolser added four kills and three blocks and Elli Kinney made her collegiate debut with 13 digs.
• Olivia Mae Van Der Werff added seven kills and a trio of blocks to go along with her first two service aces donning the Charleston maroon and gold.

 
Match Notes

• The Cougars averaged 14.50 kills per set on the night with a match-high 18 coming in the opening stanza.
• Tynley Smeltzer dropped a career-best four service aces bringing the junior just one shy of 50 in her career.
• Lexi Wierzbicki entered the weekend just 23 kills shy of 1000 in her career and a chance to reach that mark inside TD Arena. Friday's 19-kill performance moves the graduate senior to within four ahead of Saturday morning's match with Le Moyne.
• Three Cougars made their debut Friday night with Cailyn Bolser getting the starting nod and Sopheea Mink and Elli Kinney playing in all four sets.
• Friday's match saw 10 lead changes – four coming in the fourth and final set – with Charleston's 25-15 first-set win coming as the largest lead for either side.

 
Up Next
The Cougars close out the weekend and the CofC Classic against Division I newcomer Le Moyne at 11:00 a.m. before closing the weekend with West Virginia from the Big XII at 7:00 p.m.