Central, SC – Southern Wesleyan took down the Chowan Hawks on Saturday afternoon in a 3-1 final score.
The Warriors put together a balanced offensive attack, tallying 47 kills in the match. Ellie Moore, Ainsley Stovall, Briley Wolff, and Kaylon Chapman each contributed eight kills. Setters Katie Fulton (19 assists) and Amiyah Spann (14 assists) guided the offense. SWU also fired off four service aces.
Defensively, the Warriors had 68 digs with libero Calie Covey leading the team with 23. Michaela Andress had 12 digs and Amiyah Spann had 11. Briley Wolff had the lone block of the match.
Match Vitals
Set One Final: Chowan 25, Southern Wesleyan 21
Set Two Final: Southern Wesleyan 25, Chowan 22
Set Three Final: Southern Wesleyan 25, Chowan 17
Set Four Final: Southern Wesleyan 25, Chowan 20
Records: Southern Wesleyan (4-5 / CC 2-3) Chowan (2-11 / CC 1-4)
How It Happened
Set One
The Hawks went on the attack first with kills off the hands of Anna Holcombe and Rosa Collier. Southern Wesleyan was able to tie the set back up with kills by Kaylon Chapman and Ainsley Stovall. The Warriors pushed on as Amiyah Spann got in an ace off a reception error by Diana Rodriguez. Chowan fought back with kills by Makeda Edwards to tie the set up at eight. Back-to-back aces by Jadyn Brown allowed the Hawks to take the lead. Southern Wesleyan countered with a kill by Sarah Mitchell. Chowan regained the advantage as Edwards got in a couple more kills. The Hawks went on to win the first set in a 25-21 final.
Set Two
An attack error by Chowan allowed the Warriors to take the first point of the second set. However, aces by Diana Rodriguez put the Hawks on top. Ainsley Stovall got the ball past an attempted block by Rosa Lynn Collier for a kill to put Southern Wesleyan on top 4-3. The Warriors pushed on with kills by Sarah Mitchell and Kaylon Chapman. Chowan went on a four point run to come to within one, but a kill by Micheala Andress kept the Warriors on top by two. The Warriors would not back down as they took the second set in a 25-22 final.
Set Three
Southern Wesleyan continued to press in the third set as Micheala Andress got in another kill. A kill by Rosa Lynn Collier kept the Hawks within one, but the Warriors answered with a kill off the hands of Katie Fulton. Chowan took the lead as Alexandra Liggeri served up an ace. The Warriors answered as Fulton served up an ace, and then Andress laid down a kill to extend Southern Wesleyan's lead to 12-9. Ellie Moore put down a kill and then Amiyah Spann dumped the ball over the net for a kill. Southern Wesleyan would not back down as Faith Paxton set up the ball for Briley Wolff who got down a kill to give the Warriors a 25-17 point victory in the third set.
Set Four
A kill by Alexandra Liggeri allowed the Hawks to kick off the final set, but the Warriors quickly answered with kills by Ellie Moore and Briley Wolff. Chowan would not go down quietly as Hanna Virts and Jy'Asha Cousins got in a couple kills to put the Hawks on top. Wolff got in another kill this time off a set by Amiyah Spann. However, Gabriella Figueroa blocked the next attack by Moore to allow the Hawks to tie the game up at thirteen. Chowan could not maintain momentum as a kill by Micheala Andress and then a bad set by the Hawks allowed Southern Wesleyan to claim the final set in a 25-20 final score.
What's Next
The Warriors will hit the road on October 3-4 as they travel to take on the North Greenville Trailblazers and the Belmont Abbey Crusaders. They will go to Spartanburg, SC on October 8 to take on the Converse Valkyries at 6pm.
