The Georgia State volleyball team split a pair of matches on Saturday afternoon on the final day of the Hilton RTP/North Carolina Central University Tournament. The Panthers (3-1) fell to High Point, 3-0, in the opening morning match against, before rebounding with a 3-0 victory over South Carolina State in the afternoon match.
"It was a good start to the season going 3-1," commented head coach Mike Webster. "Some of the things we have worked on the preseason we saw benefits of this weekend. We are excited about how we started and are looking forward to hosting the Great 8 Volleyball Challenge next weekend."
Junior Ashley Jones was named to the all-tournament after scoring 33 kills and a .377 attack percentage on the weekend.
In the opener, High Point (2-1) came out strong in the first set and did not look back. State made a mid-set run, but could only cut the deficit to two points at 14-12. After taking the first set 25-15, State kept things close in the second and third sets, but fell in each, 25-22 and 25-23.
Jones led the Panthers with seven kills and five assists. Redshirt-sophomore Vineece Verdun finished with six kills on just nine attempts for a .444 hitting percentage.
Freshman Jamiee Freeman added five kills, while junior Rachel Boryc added four.
For the third straight match, sophomore Chelsea Perry led the team with 11 assists.
Redshirt junior Audrey Cantrell added a team-high 10 digs after finishing third in the CAA in 2008 in digs per set.
High Point was led by Megan Smith who scored 15 kills, while five players scored at least five kills. Holly Fong added 29 assists for the Panthers.
State rebounded strong in the second match with convincing win over South Carolina State (0-4). The Panthers earned 25-20 and 25-16 wins in the first two sets before a dominating 25-10 third set win in which State hit .333 with nine kills and just three errors.
Verdun and Jones tied for the team lead with eight kills apiece. Verdun, a transfer from Michigan State, had her best match in a Panther uniform, hitting .583 with just one error.. Jones led the defense at the net with four block assists.
Perry added 25 assists, leading the team for the fourth straight match, to go along with a team high four aces. Cantrell scored a team high eight digs in the victory.
Shabree Roberson led South Carolina State with four kills as the Panthers managed to hold State to just a -.033 hitting percentage. The Bulldogs had 10 attack errors in the third set alone.
Bria Brimmer added a team high 12 assists.
After struggling through injuries and an extremely difficult non-conference schedule in 2008, the Panthers have already matched last year's win total on just the opening weekend of the year.
Georgia State will return to action on Friday as the Panthers co-host the Great 8 Volleyball Challenge presented by Residence Inn-Kennesaw. The eight-team field will start play on Friday night at 5 p.m. as the Panthers host North Carolina A&T. The two-day tournament will take place in the GSU Sports Arena as well as the Kennesaw State Convocation Center.
Tournament Standings
1. Elon 4-0
T2. Georgia State 3-1
T2. High Point 3-1
T4. UNC Asheville 2-2
T4. UNC Wilmington 2-2
T6. N.C. Central 1-3
T6. The Citadel 1-3
8. S.C. State 0-4
