PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke volleyball team earned a pair of wins on Tuesday to round out a four-game home stand inside of English E. Jones Center. The Lady Braves first knocked off the Virginia State Trojans with a 3-0 sweep, then followed through with a dominating 3-0 victory over Coker.
UNCP (6-6) beat both of their opponents with ease through three sets apiece. Score sets against Virginia State (3-6) were 25-15, 25-15 and 25-22. Against the Cobras (3-7), UNCP won by scores of 25-11, 25-13 and 25-11. The Lady Braves have now won three-straight matches and improve to 4-0 all-time against Virginia State, while besting to 27-3 in the all-time series with the Cobras.
In the early match against the Trojans (3-6), the Black and Gold relied on a dynamic offense and outhit Virginia State, 45-23. The Lady Braves notched a .255 hitting percentage and finished with nine service aces. The UNCP freshman led the way with Sabrina Gonzalez turning in a game-high 16 kills, while Caroline Pridgen and Morgan Westphal added 12 kills and 11 kills, respectfully. Another Lady Braves newcomer scored a match-best as Shekinah-Joy Toloumu dished out 40 assists.
"We played really well today, we came out with intensity in both matches," said UNCP head coach Angie Byrd. "Against Virginia State we served really tough and we played defense really well, that's what got us a win."
UNCP controlled the tempo of the match from the very beginning, taking a 5-11 advantage over Virginia State after a kill by Pridgen. The Lady Braves held on to the momentum through the second set, never trailing the Trojans. In the third set Virginia State challenged the Black and Gold a little more, keeping things close through the entire set. Gonzalez slammed a kill to bring UNCP to match point and then used another kill to claim the match for the Lady Braves.
"We had intensity going into the first set against Coker, and a lot of that actually came from the crowd. They were really into the game and it kept our girls pumped up. We really capitalized at the net and I think that's what helped us get the win," said Byrd.
Against Coker the Lady Braves had their best hitting performance of the season, tallying a .297 hitting percentage. Marissa Baker topped the offense with nine kills as Pridgen and Cecilia Brandon contributed eight kills apiece. Toloumu was once again the leader distributing the ball, totaling 33 assists. Gonzalez and Danielle Brown managed the UNCP defense with 11 digs for Gonzalez and 10 from Brown.
Brown is currently third in the Peach Belt Conference in digs (153), while Gonzalez is forth in the league in the category (142). Baker also makes the PBC top-ten in digs with 117 digs. Pridgen sits at fifth in the PBC in kills, slamming 103 total kills, and defensively Brandon is eighth in blocks per set (0.83).
The Lady Braves return to the court on Friday when they hit the road and step back into conference play against Lander (7-2, 0-1 PBC). UNCP will head down to Greenwood, S.C., for a 7 p.m. match up inside of the Finis Horne Arena.
To watch the full game of UNCP vs. Virginia State click HERE.
To watch the full game of Virginia State vs. Coker click HERE.
To watch the full game of UNCP vs. Coker click HERE.
