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3-Time All-Conference USA Honoree Syndey Engle Joins WKU Soccer Team

As a right side hitter for the Western Kentucky Lady Toppers Sydney Engle racked up three All-Conference USA honors and five C-USA defensive player of the week nods, now the Floyds Knobs, Indiana, native is taking on a different style of defending as a goal keeper for the WKU soccer team.

According to the Bowling Green Daily News, the graduate student’s addition to the soccer team is effective immediately. Engle’s first chance to see the field would be Friday night as WKU plays host to Lipscomb. The Lady Topper roster lists two other goalkeepers, redshirt junior transfer Anne-Marie Ulliac and freshman Bailee Witt. Both keepers are listed a 5-9, while Engle brings extra height at 6-0.

Engle is taken advantage of a rule that allows players a 5th year of NCAA eligibility if they use it on a different sport than their first 4, given they meet certain other requirements (such as, are within 5 years of starting college, without a waiver). In volleyball, we most often see this play out with indoor players transferring and playing a season on the beach as a graduate student.

In Engle’s case, though, this has manifested in her appearance on the Western Kentucky soccer roster. Witt has started 5 of the Hilltoppers’ 6 games so far this season and has given up 8 goals on 26 shots-on-goal. The 1.658 goals-against average ranks Western Kentucky 221st out of 335 division i teams so far this season.

The addition has inspired a little spirited celebration of Engle between the soccer and volleyball teams.

 

The Conference USA Academic Medalist posted four double-doubles as a senior, while leading WKU in digs 14 times, blocks seven times and kills twice. She tallied double-digit kills seven times and double-digit digs on 15 occasions, including four double-doubles en route to AVCA Honorable Mention All-Region nods and second team all-conference accolades.

Engle supplied a little bit of everything during her four-year career on the hardwood, notching 925 kills, 835 digs, 272 blocks and 80 aces. She ranks 10th in career sets (485) and matches played (140) after helping WKU to four C-USA Tournament titles and a share of the regular season crown all four years as well.

FGCU senior outside hitter Amanda Carroll needed just three digs on Friday to put her name among an elite group of athletes, those with 1,000 career kills and 1,000 digs and she got just that, posting the milestone save in Set 3 of the team’s sweep of New Mexico State.

Carroll, who entered the year with a school record 1,354 kills and 969 digs racked up 31 kills and 28 digs on opening weekend to move to 1,385 and 997 respectively. On Friday, she managed eight kills, three digs and two assists as the team went to 3-1 with a 25-20, 25-12, 25-22 victory.

After the team’s Friday morning sweep of New Mexico State at the Lobo Classic, Carroll’s career totals stand at 1,393 and 1,000. She becomes just the sixth player in school history to eclipse the 1,000 dig milestone and just the second to join the 1,000-1,000 club (alongside Brooke Youngquist Sweat 2004-07).

Even more fun for the Albuquerque, New Mexico native, is that she was able to reach the elite milestone in front of her hometown crowd. The Lobo Classic marks the first collegiate matches in Albuquerque for the Sandia High School alumna, who led the school to the 2013 5A state title and earned New Mexico Gatorade Player of the Year nods in 2013 and 2014.

All told, Carroll not only tops the FGCU record books in kills (1,385), she also ranks first in reception percentage (.969 with 1723 receptions entering the weekend) and second in career aces (101), just 38 behind Ana Kokanovic‘s standard from 2007-08.

Carroll has posted double-digit kill tallies in 80 of her 98 matches and 10 or more digs in 47 of 98 matches. She has posted 42 career double doubles.

In addition to the match with New Mexico State, the Eagles are set to face New Mexico at 9:30 p.m. ET Friday and Eastern Kentucky at 1 p.m. Saturday.

With the Men’s World Championships looming in just nine days, the status of French national team member Earvin Ngapeth may be in jeopardy. The outside hitter, who was part of the French silver medal team at the inaugural Volleyball Nations League tournament earlier this summer, reportedly suffered an abdominal injury on Wednesday, although it is not said to be as serious as the one that kept him out of the 2017 CEV European Championships.

According to IVolley Magazine, “the medical outlook calls for uscular stretching and of two to three weeks of rest.”

Head coach Laurent Tillie, however, said “there is no reason to worry.”

It will not be the first time in 2018 that the French national team has been without Ngapeth, as the star was benched for Week 2 of VNL play. He returned on Week 3 and went on to score a total of 115 points in the tournament, second most of any French player behind Stephen Boyer and 34th overall with 87 kills, 11 blocks and 17 aces.

In additional to abdominal issues, Ngapeth, who was MVP of the 2015 and 2017 French World League title teams, also missed the 2017 FIVB Grand Champions Cup with lower back issues.

Ngapeth plays his club ball for Zenit Kazan, after transferring from Italy’s Modena. The 28-year old outside hitter signed a two-year deal going through the spring of 2020.

Prior to joining Zenit Kazan, Ngapeth led Modena to two Italian Championships, two Italian Cup titles and two Italian SuperCup wins.

2018 NORCECA U-18 Girls’ Continental Championship

With the United States and Cuba already in the semifinals after the pool play round, the final four field was rounded out in Thursday’s quarterfinals. The Dominican Republic and Canada won going away to move to Friday’s semis with a run at the gold still on the table.

With its dominating win over Nicaragua, the DR earned a meeting with the United States. Meanwhile, Canada is now set for a rematch of Group A’s opening contest with Cuba. The Cubans won that match 25-19, 25-20, 25-20.

Dominican Republic def. Nicaragua 3-0 (25-6, 25-11, 25-16)

The Dominican Republic outdid Nicaragua in offense alone, posting 39 kills, while their foes managed just 33 points total in the match. The DR boasted a 39-13 lead in putaways, a 12-3 advantage in blocks and a 5-3 edge in aces.

“Yesterday we came away with a defeat, but today we made a better game,” Dominican coach Alexandre Ceccato said. We took the opportunity to do some tests with players, thinking about the game we will have against the United States, which we will try to play in the best way. ”

Dominican captain Geraldine Gonzalez racked up 16 points on nine kills and seven stuffs. Flormarie Heredia tacked on 11 points (9 kills, 2 blocks) and Romina Cornelio added seven points (6 kills, 1 ace). Joeliza Fis served up three of the team’s five aces.

Maria Belen Arcia was tops among the Nicaraguan players with eight points (5 kills, 2 aces, 1 block). Her nearest help came from three players with three points each: Yaren Llanes, Marjorie Medrano and Masiel Brenes.

“For them it represents a good experience to play against teams of that level, that realize that with training and effort you can compete against them,” Nicaraguan coach Claudia Noguera said.

Match Stats

 

Canada def. Honduras 3-0 (25-15, 25-16, 25-16)

Eleven aces, off the hands of six different players, helped lift Canada past Honduras in just over an hour. The Canadians ace tally matched the Honduran’s offensive output, making the rest of the stats merely a bonus.

Canada outdid Honduras 37-11 in kills, 3-2 in blocks and 11-4 in aces. Thirty Canadian miscues helped keep Honduras in the game, accounting for 30 of the team’s 47 total points, while the team gave away 24 points of its own on errors, just one third of Canada’s scores.

Outside hitter Katarina Pantovic and middle blocker Anna Smrek notched 12 points apiece to lead Canada. Smrek downed a match-high eight kills and served up a team-best four aces. Pantovic added seven putaways, three aces and a team-high two blocks. Opposite Hannah Duchesneau also registered seven putaways and an ace.

Outside hitter Dazly Duran managed a team-best six points for Honduras on five putaways and an ace. Opposite Rocio Duron was next on the team with five scorers on two kills, two blocks and an ace.

The Canadians, which are vying for their first NORCECA U18 medal since 1998, are in their first tournament back after a 12 year layoff.

“We felt very well, very happy, this was our main goal to be in the semifinal after so many years,” Canadian coach Dale Melnick said. “I feel very good because the team played before a large audience, and a good team, because Honduras played very well. Our athletes played very calm, very calm and enjoyed the game. ”

Match Stats

AVP Gold Series – The Championships in Chicago

Sixty-four men’s teams and 36 women’s faced off in Thursday’s qualifying bracket trying to earn a spot in the AVP Chicago main draw.

Making it through on the men’s side were:

Amorim/del Sol were the only one of the eight qualifiers to make the main draw with three straight set wins, not allowing their foes more than 16 points in any of the six sets. The pair won 21-9, 21-9 vs. Timothy Cooper/Matthew West, 21-16, 21-15 vs. Philip Burrow/Alex Diaz and 21-14, 21-9 vs. Dillon Cox/Mike Michelau.

On the other end of the ledger, Drake/Ruzick and Roschitz/Tucker each went the distance in their final two contests. Roschitz/Tucker had to rally in their final contest for a 16-21, 21-19, 15-13 win. Meanwhile, it took a 14-21, 22-20, 15-9 win in round 2 to keep Drake/Ruzick alive.

Honer/Meehan also played two tiebreak matches, rallying in each of their first two contests for victory. First up, the pair topped Michael Groselle/Brad Torsone 21-23, 21-16, 16-14. Next, the duo ousted No. 2 qualifiers Branden Clemens/Benjamin Vaught 16-21, 21-18, 17-15. In their final match, the pair outdid Dan Buehring/Matthew McCarthy 23-21, 21-12.

Araiza and indoor Olympian David Lee picked up two straight set victories, before upsetting top qualifier Raffe Paulis/Jeff Samuels in tiebreak, rallying for the 15-21, 21-11, 15-8 win.

Berenek/Fiers played their toughest match to open the day, coming back against Garrett Bucklin/Frank Field for a 22-24, 21-9, 15-13 victory, before winning two via sweep.

In women’s qualifying, it was

Meister/Strakova had to play just one match to make the main draw after their intended first round opponent forfeited. It did take a tiebreak win, however, to stamp their ticket to Friday. The pair rallied past Lauren Dickson/Claire Wolfe 19-21, 21-15, 15-10.

House/Turner also benefitted from a first round forfeit. The duo then swept past Tanna Aljoe/Brittany Fennell 21-16, 21-19 to move on.

Fonoimoana/Piantadosi-Lima rallied for a 22-24, 21-15, 15-10 opening round win over Carly Wopat/Elise Zappia before cementing their place in the main draw with a 21-18, 21-13 win over Avery Bush/Camie Manwill.

Van Gunst/Van Gunst played two tiebreak matches on Thursday. The pair bested Suzana Manole/Lavinia Tataran 18-21, 21-14, 15-8 and then again dug deep rallying past Kimberly Hildreth/Sarah Schermerhorn 16-21, 24-22, 15-13.

Sponcil/Cannon, who are playing their first tournament together in 2018 after Sponcil played on both the AVP and FIVB stages with partner Lauren Fendrick, blazed through the opposition, never allowing more than 12 points in a set. The duo won 21-8, 21-15 against Jessica Gaffney/Katie Pyles and Chelsea Ross/Bethanie Thomas 21-12, 21-10.

 

FIVB Montpellier One Star

Four pool winners were crowned for each gender on Thursday, setting up Friday’s Round of 12 and eventually the quarterfinal matches.

Advancing directly to the quarterfinals with two wins apiece on the women’s side were:

  • Pool A: No. 1 Alexandra Jupiter/Lezana Placette (France)
  • Pool B: No. 2 Laura Caluori/Dunja Gerson (Switzerland)
  • Pool C: No. 3 Nicole Eiholzer/Elena Steinemann (Switzerland)
  • Pool D: No. 4 Esmee Bobner/Zoe Verge-Depre (Switzerland)

Bobner/Verge Depre started in the qualifiers on Tuesday and then posted sweeps of Canadians Rian Lenarduzzi/Anna Dunn-Suen and Frenchwomen Clamence Vieira/Mia Severine Guyot Poverini.

Top seeded Jupiter/Placette are the only one of the four pool champions that played a tiebreak match, with the French doing so in their Pool A opener against Americans Audrey Nourse/Nicole Nourse 21-12 .20-22, 15-12.

Only one other pool play match went the distance, with Norway’s Emilie Olimstad/Frida Berntsen holding on for a 22-20, 15-21, 15-9 win over Julia Wouters/Pleun Ypma of the Netherlands in Pool B.

With just 16 teams in the main draw, the top three teams in each pool moved on to Friday.

Americans Nourse/Nourse were eliminated after going 0-2 with the loss to Jupiter/Placette and a 21-12, 21-14 defeat at the hands of Greeks Konstantina Tsopoulou/Dimitra Manavi.

On the men’s side, five of the 16 pool play matches went to tiebreak, including two involving pool title winners.

Each of the four champions went 2-0.

  • Pool A: No. 1 Maxime Thiercy/Arnaud Gauthier-Rat (France)
  • Pool B: No. 2 Youssef Krou/Quincy Aye (France)
  • Pool C: No. 6 Jakob Molin/Linus Tolse (Sweden)
  • Pool D: No. 12 Edouard Rowlandson/Olivier Barthelemy (France)

Thiercy/Gauthier-Rat and Krou/Aye each won both of their matches in straight sets.

Molin/Tolse upset No. 3 seed Romain DiGiantommaso/Jeremy Silvestre of France in tiebreak (15-21, 24-22, 18-16) to claim Pool C.

Rowlandson/Barthelemy also went the distance to secure a bye to the quarterfinals, holding on for a 21-17, 17-21, 15-13 win over Switzerland’s No. 4 Florian Breer/Yves Haussener.

Courtesy: NC State Athletics

Dates: Friday – Saturday, August 31 & September 1
Location: Dallas, Texas
Site: Moody Coliseum

Opponents: SMU (Fri.), #15 Creighton (Fri.), Arkansas State (Sat.)
Times: 1:30 p.m. (Fri.) | 5:30 p.m. (Fri.) | 1:00 P.M. (Sat.)
Live Video: Pony TV (SMU Match Only)
Live Stats: SideArm Stats

When third-year NC State Volleyball head coach Linda Hampton-Keith put together the schedule for 2018, she knew that the Wolfpack would be challenged right out of the gate. VCU and Washington State were 2017 NCAA Tournament teams, and both returned a strong core of players for this season.

In contrast, the Pack lost its top-three scorers from last season and its starting libero. Despite the challenge, NC State rose to the occasion in the opening weekend of the year to earn a 3-2 victory against Rams before coming up short against Washington State on Sunday, 3-1.

“We’re changing the perception and course of the program and we always want to make sure we’re putting ourselves in a position to play the top competition and put ourselves in the NCAA Tournament conversation at the end of the season,” said Hampton-Keith. “Regardless of the outcome, that’s what preseason is for to play teams outside of the conference that will challenge us and prepare us for the ACC play and give us a glimpse of what it’s like to be a top 50 or a top 25 program because that’s what we want to be. That’s our philosophy behind schedule tough opponents.”

The Wolfpack received everything it hoped from opening weekend, as VCU gave the squad a stiff challenge and forced the match to five sets after trailing 2-0. The Rams were 30-3 last season as the Atlantic 10 Conference Champion and were the unanimous preseason favorite in a vote by the league’s head coaches.

“Our passing has been a strength in practice, but it wasn’t as good as we need it to be on opening weekend. It could be first match jitters or a lot of other factors, but we need to spend our time and focus on serving and serve-receive because that’s where everything kind of makes or breaks you.”

In the fifth set of last Friday’s match against VCU, NC State recorded an 81 percent sideout rate. Of the 11 times that the Rams served, the Wolfpack won nine of those rallies. With the improved passing, NC State tallied a .250 team attacking percentage with only two errors.

“That was a huge win for us,” Hampton-Keith added. “That’s a signature win for us given that they’re heavily favored to win their conference again this year. I think that really sets the tone for us and the expectation of where we’re going. For us to start with a win, going five sets against a really good opponent is huge and I’m excited about that.”

The focus of practice this week has been serve-receive, as the Pack was able to run its offense and had success when the team was in system thanks to a great pass. For NC State the schedule doesn’t get any easier this weekend, as the Wolfpack plays three teams that each recorded 20 or more wins last season.

—

Scouting SMU

The SMU Mustangs finished the 2017 season with a 21-11 overall record, narrowly missing selection to the NCAA Tournament but the squad participated in the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) in the postseason.

SMU dropped a pair of matches to Lipscomb and Iowa on opening weekend, but the Mustangs are a strong team that was picked to finish fourth in the American Athletic Conference (AAC).

NC State and SMU have met twice in the history of the programs with the Wolfpack winning the most recent matchup in 2016, 3-2, inside Reynolds Coliseum. The Mustangs won the other meeting at a neutral site in 1999.

The Mustangs own a pair of Preseason All-Conference Selections in senior outside hitter Brittany Adams and junior setter Kendall Patterson.

Scouting Creighton

Creighton began the season ranked No. 13 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top-25 Poll and the Bluejays are ranked No. 15 this week. Creighton opened the season with a 3-2 victory against fifth-ranked Kentucky at the Trojan Invitational hosted by USC.

The Bluejays lost its other two matches of the weekend, falling 3-0 against a very good Northern Iowa squad that was unranked to start the year but checks in at No. 17 in this week’s poll. USC also defeated Creighton with 3-2 win in the last outing for the squad.

Creighton was picked to finish second in the Big East Conference preseason poll behind Marquette. The Bluejays placed three student-athletes on the Preseason All-Big East Team including senior outside hitters Taryn Kloth and Jaali Winters, along with junior libero Brittany Witt.

Friday’s match will be the first meeting between the programs.

Scouting Arkansas State

Arkansas State turned in a strong 2017 season, as the Red Wolves were 21-12 and advanced to the second round of the NIVC. This year ASU is 2-1 on the year with 3-0 wins over Memphis and Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

The Red Wolves were picked to finish second in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. Outside hitter Carlisa May was chosen as the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and Ellie Watkins was selected as the Preseason Setter of the Year.

NC State and Arkansas State have met three times in the history of the programs with NCSU owning a 2-1 advantage in the all-time series. The Red Wolves won the last meeting, which was also at a neutral site, 3-0 in 2016.

Texas Ties

NC State is heading back to Texas this weekend, after the Wolfpack earned its first NCAA Tournament victory last season in Austin. Also, three players on the NC State roster hail from the state of Texas: Kaylee Frazier, Nailah Gordon and Kylie Pickrell.

AVP Gold Series – The Championships in Chicago

AVP Chicago is the last stop on the three-event gold series, which features increased points and prize money. The prize purse is $250,000 for the event, which is set on the backdrop between Lake Michigan and the Chicago Skyline.

It is also the final chance for teams to vie for a spot in the Hawaii Invitational tournament in September. (Two teams per gender will receive a bid to Hawaii based on their best finishes in two of the three gold series events). Current team standings are here.

The Field

  • 24 teams per gender will play in the main draw beginning on Friday
  • Men
    • 64 men’s teams will vie for the final eight spots in the main draw
    • Three-time 2018 champs and 2016 Chicago gold medalists Phil Dalhausser/Nick Lucena are the top seed. Taylor Crabb/Jake Gibb, Reid Priddy/Jeremy Casebeer, Ed Ratledge/Roberto Rodriguez and Billy Allen/Ryan Doherty round out the top 5. 
    • After finishing seventh in his come back from 18 months away due to an autoimmune disorder at AVP Manhattan Beach two weeks ago, Tri Bourne is at it again in Chicago alongside partner Trevor Crabb as the No. 11 seed.
    • Indoor Olympian David Lee is back for his second crack at life on the beach after making it through qualifying at AVP Manhattan Beach.
    • John Hyden is teaming up with Duncan Budinger, former NBA star to beach player Chase Budinger’s brother, for the Chicago Open. Hyden and Theo Brunner finished third in Manhattan Beach, while Duncan teamed up with Daniel Dalanhese to finish 13th.
  • Women
    • 36 women’s teams playing in Thursday’s qualifying bracket
    • Two-time 2018 AVP champs Sara Hughes/Summer Ross are the top seed on the women’s side, followed by Kelly Claes/Brittany Hochevar, two-time gold medalists Alix Klineman/April Ross and Emily Day/Betsi Flint and Emily Stockman/Kelley Larsen.
    • Sarah Sponcil is playing with a new partner in Chicago, teaming up with Terese Cannon in the qualifying bracket. Sponcil has teamed up with Lauren Fendrick at three AVP and two FIVB events, including a runnerup finish in Austin and ninth-pace finish at the Vienna Major. Cannon has played with Corinne Quiggle and Jace Pardon twice and 2017 partner Nicolette Martin once on the AVP circuit in 2018.

Event Extras

  • The AVP is hosting the Chicago Social Tournament on Saturday, an adult coed recreational and intermediate 4’s and 6’s event on North Avenue Beach

  • The AVP also is offering an exclusive Pong Night event Saturday night at We Are Spin, in conjunction with the Chicago Sport & Social Club, including ping pong, a DJ and more. Details here.

AVP Chicago Event History

  • 2017:
    • Men: Ryan Doherty/John Hyden def. Phil Dalhausser/Nick Lucena for gold. Billy Allen/Stafford Slick and Jeremy Casebeer/John Mayer were third.
    • Women: Kelly Claes/Sara Hughes def. Summer Ross/Brooke Sweat for gold. Emily Day/Brittany Hochevar and Lauren Fendrick/April Ross were third.
  • 2016
    • Men: Phil Dalhausser/Nick Lucena def. Tri Bourne/John Hyden for gold. Taylor Crabb/Trevor Crabb and Ryan Doherty/John Mayer were third.
    • Women: Lauren Fendrick/Brooke Sweat def. Betsi Flint/Kelley Larsen for gold. Lane Carico/Summer Ross and Ali McColloch/Geena Urango were third.
  • 2015
    • Men: Brad Keenan/Ty Tramblie def. Ryan Doherty/John Mayer for gold. Todd Rogers/Stafford Slick and Casey Jennings/Billy Kolinske were third.
    • Women: Nicole Branagh/Jenny Kropp def. Kim DiCello/Kendra Vanzwieten for gold. Lane Carico/Summer Ross and Amandy Dowdy/Heather McGuire were third.

AVP 2018 Podium Finishes

  • Four men’s teams have raised AVP trophies in 2018
    • Phil Dalhausser/Nick Lucena – Austin (May 20), New York City (June 10), Manhattan Beach (Aug. 19)
    • Taylor Crabb/Jake Gibb – Seattle (June 24)
    • Ed Ratledge/Roberto Rodriguez (July 8)
    • Theo Brunner/John Hyden (July 29)
  • Three teams have won women’s titles in 2018
    • Alix Klineman/April Ross – Austin (May 20) and Manhattan Beach (Aug. 19)
    • Sara Hughes/Summer Ross – New York City (June 10) and Hermosa Beach (July 29)
    • Emily Day/Betsi Flint – Seattle (June 24) and San Francisco (July 8)

Already the school record holder in season digs with 617, Charlotte’s Yumi Garcia etched her name atop the match-record list in saves with 44 against Davidson on Tuesday. The dig tally is the highest in the nation thus far in 2018.

The previous school record of 38 was set in 2013 by Michelle Hovey at Chattanooga (Sept. 6) and matched again by Hovey against Marshall a month later (Oct. 26, 2013).

Garcia’s previous best of 35 digs came against Bethune Cookman on Sept. 1, 2017, one of four 30+ dig efforts for the then sophomore. 

The reigning Conference USA Libero of the Year and AVCA South All-Region and All-Conference USA first team honoree pulled up 5.27 digs per set in 2017, including 30 double-digit efforts. She notched 617 saves to best Carly Romberg‘s season record of 571 set in 2008.

In just five matches, Garcia has racked up 137 digs, 6.52 per set.

Her 44-dig effort was left short however as the 49ers lost Tuesday’s match to Davidson in five sets (23-25, 26-24, 13-25, 25-10, 15-11).

After each team won a deuce set and a blowout, the match came down to Set 5. Davidson took a quick 9-3 lead and Charlotte never covered. Trailing 14-8 after back to back kills by Mason Rooney gave Davidson a match-point try, the 49ers rallied to within three with kills by Reeana Richardson and Tyra Galloway and a stuff by Galloway and Jannelle Curtiss. Davidson called timeout and finished the victory on a stuff by Rooney and Ellie Crosley.

Charlotte boasted a 16-13 edge in blocks and 92-84 lead in digs, but Davidson led the rest of the statistical categories: kills (67-55), hitting percentage (.186 to .179), aces (4-2).

It may only have just the first week of the 2018 season, but it was a memorable one for several players who etched their names as members of the 1,000 club.

Iona’s Claire Archibald joined an elite group on Friday, moving her career digs tally to 1,007. The senior outside hitter already boasted 1,192 career kills, making her the first member of the 1,000-1,000 Club in 2018.

FGCU’s Amanda Carroll is just three digs away from joining the 1,000-1,000 Club. Carroll entered the year with 1,354 kills and 969 digs. She added 31 kills and 28 digs on the weekend to move to 1,385 and 997 respectively.

Here’s a look at who else joined the 1,000 kill or 1,000 dig clubs and how they got there.

1,000 Kill Club Members

  • Kentucky’s Leah Edmond was the first to reach the 1,000 kill plateau in 2018. Needing just 11 putdowns coming into the weekend, the junior reached the milestone as the Wildcats faced off with No. 18 Creighton on Friday morning.
  •  Elon’s Kam Terry notched her 1,000th kill in the first set of the Phoenix’s Match 2 victory over Charlotte. She notched 10 kills in the opener vs. Presbyterian and joined the club with 11 more vs. Charlotte.
  • Stanford‘s Kathryn Plummer took just 70 matches to reach the 1,000-kill milestone. After posting 13 kills in the team’s opening win over American on Sunday, the junior needed just one in Monday night’s match vs. Howard. She came through with eight in a sweep.
  • College of Charleston’s Kennedy Madison needed 47 kills to reach the milestone and came through with 48 putaways: 19 vs Missouri State, 14 vs. Western Kentucky and 15 vs. Alabama at the Hampton Inn Charleston/West Ashley Classic.
  • UC Santa Barbara’s Lindsey Ruddins had the farthest to go among the new members of the 1,000 kill club, needing 56 kills to reach 1,000. The junior posted 60 putdowns on the weekend at the Miami Tournament, including 12 vs. Saint Louis to move to 1,004.

1,000 Dig Club Newcomers

  • Cincinnati’s Carly Nolan led the Bearcats with 18 digs in the team’s opening match with UC Santa Barbara, moving her to 1,003. She wrapped UC’s stay in Oxford, Ohio with 24 more saves to boost her total to 1,027.
  • Iona’s Claire Archibald racked up 21 digs in Iona’s first two matches of the year, putting her career tally at 1,007. The senior outside ended the weekend at 1,020.
  • Two players reached the 1,000-dig plateau at the Iowa State Challenge on Friday as Ole Miss’ Caroline Adams did so against Virginia and Iowa State’s Hali Hillegas did so against Ole Miss that evening.
  • Valparaiso’s Katherine Carlson posted 17 digs against , 5 vs. St. Francis (Pa.) and then six against Iona to put her name among the ranks of the 1,000 dig club. She tacked on 13 more against Eastern Illinois to up her career tally to 1,026.
  • American’s junior libero Kristen Largay surpassed 1,000 digs during the team’s four-set victory at George Washington on Saturday. With nine more saves on Sunday, Largay moved her career total to 1,015.

Approaching 1,000 Kills

  • Rider’s Hailey Riede (993) had to watch everyone else on the court as her team kicks off play on Friday against Lehigh at the Crosstown Tournament in Easton, Pennsylvania.
  • Auburn’s Brenna McIlroy managed 19 kills on opening weekend, leaving her just 5 away heading into the team’s Friday match to open the Butler Invitational.
  • After posting her first 964 kills at West Virginia, Peyton Caffrey transferred to Florida State for her final two seasons. She managed 28 putaways on her opening weekend with the Seminoles, leaving her 8 away from the milestone putdown. FSU plays TCU on Friday at the Colorado State Tournament.
  • New Mexico State’s Tatyana Battle stands at 991 kills heading into Friday’s matches with FGCU and Eastern Kentucky at the Lobo Classic.
  • Fifty-three kills on opening weekend has pulled Creighton’s Taryn Kloth within 10 kills of the 1,000-kill club. She went from 937 to 990 at the Trojan Invitational. Next up for the Bluejays are matches against Arkansas State and North Carolina State on Friday at the SMU Doubletree Classic in Dallas.
  • Wofford’s Catie Cronister piled up 26 kills on opening weekend at the Purdue Reamer Club Premier. The junior needs just 11 more terminations.
  • Seton Hall’s Abby Thelen upped her career tally to 988 with 46 on opening weekend at the Blue & White Classic. The senior outside hitter needs 12 more and should reach the milestone at home at the Seton Hall Classic, where the Pirates host VCU, Pittsburgh and Oklahoma.
  • Arizona’s Kendra Dahlke registered 67 kills on the Wildcats’ opening weekend in Sacramento, leaving her just 12 away as the team prepares to host the Cactus Classic. Friday matches against Lipscomb and San Diego State are next on the slate.
  • Nineteen kills stand between San Diego State’s Deja Harris and the 1,000-kill milestone. She started the year at 930 and added 51 at the Aztec Invitational. The Cactus Classic in Tucson, Arizona, is the next stop for SDSU with Pacific, Arizona and Lipscomb ahead.
  • Veronica ‘Roni’ Jones Perry is 22 away from joining the 1,000 kill club as BYU heads into its home Nike Invitational against West Virginia, Stanford and Wichita State this weekend.
  • Incarnate Word’s Autumn Lockley needs 29 kills after starting the year at 934 and adding 37 at the I-10 Challenge in New Orleans. Next up, UIW faces James Madison, UTSA and Texas State at the Creeds & Crests Classic in San Marcos, Texas.
  • Taylor Leath notched 31 kills in her first weekend at new home Penn State, bumping her career tally to 959. She’ll look to get 41 more as the Nittany Lions play host  to Temple and Texas A&M this weekend or next weekend against Stanford and Oregon in Palo Alto.

Approaching 1,000 Digs

  • Utah State’s Tasia Taylor is just one dig away from 1,000 after notching 69 saves at the Sacramento State tournament (24 at Sacramento State , 22 vs Arizona, 23 vs. CSUN).
  • FGCU’s Amanda Carroll is just three digs away from joining the 1,000-1,000 Club. Carroll entered the year with 1,354 kills and 969 digs. She added 31 kills and 28 digs on the weekend to move to 1,385 and 997 respectively. 
  • Chattanooga’s Miranda Elpers registered 27 digs at the Tennessee Classic on opening weekend, moving to 974. She will look to get the next 26 saves at the Mocs’ home Chattanooga Classic this weekend against UNC Asheville, Tennessee State and North Alabama.
  • Junior libero Ginny Gerig did not play in the team’s opening three matches at the UMKC Kangaroo Classic, leaving her with 966 saves heading into Week 2 at the MT Blue Raider Bash. The team faces Middle Tennessee, Stetson and Troy.

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