WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Carolina University Women's Volleyball entered Saturday's tri-match riding a four-match winning streak and looking to continue its recent momentum against Pfeiffer University and host Salem College.
The Bruins opened the day in impressive fashion, sweeping Pfeiffer in straight sets, 25-15, 25-21 and 25-17, to extend their winning streak to five matches. Carolina finished the contest with 43 kills and just six attack errors, posting a .280 hitting percentage.
SarahElizabeth Samuels led the Carolina attack with 13 kills on a .387 hitting percentage, while Melia Coleman delivered nine kills with just one error on 14 attempts for a .571 percentage. Jordan Connolly added six kills without an error and hit .600, while Britney Comolli contributed six kills. Natalia Cano recorded three service aces as the Bruins controlled the match from start to finish.
Carolina returned to the court later in the day for a hard-fought matchup against host Salem College. The Bruins took the opening set, 25-23, before Salem responded with a 25-20 victory in the second. Carolina regained control with a convincing 25-16 third-set win and stood one set away from completing a perfect day.
The fourth set proved to be the turning point. In a back-and-forth battle, Salem edged Carolina 27-25 to force a decisive fifth set before taking the finale, 15-7. The five-set defeat snapped Carolina's five-match winning streak and moved the Bruins to 9-8 on the season.
SarahElizabeth Samuels once again paced the Bruins offensively with 14 kills while hitting .343. Melia Coleman turned in another strong performance with 13 kills on a .478 hitting percentage and three solo blocks. Britney Comolli added eight kills, while Jordan Connolly finished with seven. Rileigh Franklin contributed six kills and a block.
Carolina also produced 11 service aces in the five-set match, with Charlee Hale, Cano and Valeria Suarez recording three apiece. Charlee Hale anchored the back row with a match-high 24 digs, while Syvannah Poore and Natalia Cano distributed 21 and 20 assists, respectively.
Despite falling just short of completing the Saturday sweep, Head Coach Chelsea Jones was encouraged by the way her team competed throughout two matches.
"I thought our team showed a lot of fight today. We came out focused against Pfeiffer and did a great job of playing together and taking care of business. Against Salem, we had opportunities and battled through five tough sets, but we have to continue learning how to finish in those moments. There are a lot of positives we can take from today, and now our focus turns to getting better and being ready to compete again on Tuesday."
Carolina University finishes the tri-match 1-1 and will return home on Tuesday, September 22, when the Bruins host Livingstone College at 6 p.m.
