JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Sept. 5, 2024) – Following a successful first weekend at the Wildcat Classic, East Tennessee State University volleyball heads to the Mountaineer Classic in Boone, N.C.
The Bucs are set to take on host Appalachian State (10:30 a.m. Friday), Gardner-Webb (4:30 p.m. Friday) and Kennesaw State (Noon Saturday) throughout the weekend.
ETSU returns to the state of North Carolina with a 2-1 record. Despite falling to Marshall in the season opener, the Bucs bounced back with wins over Elon and Davidson. Graduate student setter
Reese Rhodes put on a show in her debut in the Blue & Gold, posting 90 assists, 27 digs, 13 kills, five blocks and five aces in ten sets. Junior outside hitter
Brianna Cantrell and senior outside hitter
Amanda Lowe provided an injection of offense, recording 31 and 30 kills, respectively.
Sophomore setter
Enisilina Savelio is primed to make an impact at the service line after notching eight aces in as many sets. Savelio's hot start is notable considering she only totaled 10 aces across her entire freshman campaign. On the defensive end, sophomore libero
Melanie Morris led the way with 37 digs, and senior middle blocker
Abbey Thomas racked up 15 blocks (five solo).
Appalachian State is 1-2 leading up to their home tournament after traveling to the Bobcat Tournament in Athens, Ohio. The Mountaineers defeated Xavier 3-2 in their season opener, but lost consecutive matches to Wright State (0-3) and host Ohio (2-3).
Junior middle blocker Maya Winterhoff paced App State with 41 kills, 14 blocks and four aces – all team highs – in 13 sets played. Junior defensive specialist/libero Kenady Roper added 48 digs and the setter duo of freshman Julianna Horta and redshirt junior Addison Heidemann provided 66 and 58 assists, respectively, throughout the tournament.
The Mountaineers lead the all-time series with ETSU 41-18. The last meeting between the squads came in the fall of 2021, when Appalachian State won 3-1.
Gardner-Webb enters the Mountaineer Classic with a 1-3 record. They were swept by Norfolk State and Miami (OH) before beating Lamar 3-1 at the Norfolk State Classic. The Runnin' Bulldogs also fell to Elon 2-3 in a standalone road match on Tuesday.
Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Cayton Webb's 50 kills leads Gardner-Webb. Webb's five aces are tied for the team lead with sophomore libero Molly Littlefield, who also has 78 digs. The Runnin' Bulldogs, like Appalachian State, employ two setters. Juniors Morgan Hornaday and Rebecca Siedenburg have 58 and 53 assists, respectively.
ETSU is 4-0 all-time against Gardner-Webb and will play the Runnin' Bulldogs for the first time since 2007, when the Bucs won 3-2.
Kennesaw State heads into the second weekend of competition 0-3 after falling to Wichita State twice (1-3 and 2-3) and Indiana (0-3) at the Kennesaw State Invitational. Junior outside hitter Manu Johnsen leads the Owls with 40 kills. Redshirt sophomore setter Kourtney Brown boasts eight aces, and is second on the team with 49 assists, behind only freshman setter Kaeley Walz.
The Bucs are 11-5 all-time against the Owls, but Kennesaw State won the most recent meeting in 2023, 3-1.
After the Mountaineer Classic, the Bucs will head north for the Liberty Invitational beginning at 6 p.m. on Sept. 12 vs. Virginia. For more information on Buccaneer volleyball, follow @ETSUVolleyball on X (Twitter) and Instagram, and visit ETSUBucs.com.
