CHARLESTON, S.C. – The College of Charleston battled back from a 1-0 deficit for a 3-1 win over the Towson University volleyball team on Sunday afternoon in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play. Junior Saitaua Iosia led the Tigers with 11 kills and seven digs.
Four straight points including a kill from junior Victoria Williams allowed the Tigers to take a 12-11 lead in the first set. A kill from senior Dayane Van Ass allowed Towson to push its advantage to 18-14. College of Charleston scored five of the next seven points to pull to within one, 20-19. Back-to-back kills from Iosia and freshman Stephanie Massanet pushed the Tiger lead back to three, 22-19. The two teams traded points before a kill from Williams gave the Tigers a 25-23 set victory and an early lead in the match.
The Cougars scored 11 of the first 15 points in the second set to open up an early advantage. A service ace from junior Paige Sekerak pulled the Tigers to within four, 16-12. College of Charleston scored seven of the next eight points to push its lead to 23-13. Kerstin Koehler had a pair of kills during that stretch for the Cougars. The Tigers briefly halted the Cougars with a kill from Massanet. However, a kill and an attack error by the Tigers gave College of Charleston a 25-14 set win that evened the match at 1-1.
The third set was a close one that featured eight ties and two lead changes. A kill from freshman Lindsay Flaherty had the Tigers and Cougars tied at 11-11. A block put the Cougars up 15-13 in the set. The two teams continued to battle as a Koehler kill put the home team up 21-16. A block from Flaherty and Van Ass pulled the Tigers to within two, 21-19. A kill from Emily Neideffer gave the Cougars a 25-21 set win and a 2-1 lead in the match.
A service ace from Sloane White gave College of Charleston an 8-5 lead in the fourth set. A kill from White extended the Cougar advantage to 15-9. Back-to-back service aces from Kyana Miller made it 17-13 in the set. The Cougars scored a point on the next play before the Tigers rattled off four straight points which made it 18-17 in the set. A pair of blocks from Flaherty and Massanet highlighted the run. College of Charleston scored six of the next eight points to take a 24-19 lead in the set. A kill from sophomore Candace Steadman made it 24-20, however a service error on the next play gave the Cougars a 25-20 win and victory in the match.
Iosia added a pair of service aces and a pair of blocks to her team-leading kills total. Van Ass and Williams each notched 10 kills in the contest. Junior Aimee Schubert dished out 26 assists while Sekerak had a team-high nine digs.
Darcy Dorton led the Cougars with 18 kills and nine digs while Neideffer had 10 kills.
Towson is back in action on Tuesday, Nov. 5 when the Tigers host Navy in SECU Arena at 7 p.m.
