WILMINGTON, N.C. – The second day of the Dig & Dive Invitational brought much of the same as the first for Carson- Newman (0-7) as the Eagles fell to Webber International (7-10) in consecutive matches making the final score 5-0 down by the coast in the early morning dual followed by another shutout loss to Missouri Baptist (8-12) in the late morning showdown on Saturday.
"Obviously not the results that we wanted for the weekend, but this team is growing and learning," head coach Kody DuBarry said. "Saw some really good things from every player this weekend. We are going to take everything that we learned from the weekend and apply it to the next few weeks' worth of practice.
"The whole team showed a lot of fight, especially today."
Dual One: Webber International 5, C-N 0
Saturday started as Gabrielle Bailey (Pompano Beach, Fla.) and Micah Palmer (White Pine, Tenn.) lost in two sets to Teryn Mills and Jessica Terry at the No. 5 position. The final scores were 21-14, 21-19.
The fourth-seeded pair of Micah Depetro (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Abby Struewing (Lebanon, Ohio) lost the first set to Kaxandra Naranjo and Molly Fusarelli 21-13 but were not ready to give the match up. Depetro and Struewing turned around in the second set and battled into a set of extra points, leaving the score 23-21 and forcing a tie breaking set. The Eagles fought hard in the third set, but their tremendous efforts were not enough for the Warriors losing the set and the match 15-13.
Grace Seymour (Hudson, Fla.) and Lauren Williams (Carrollton, Ga.) suited up against Laura Embry and Salla Rautiainen at the No. 3 spot. The two battled in a teeter-tottering first set but fell to the Warriors' pair 25-23. The second set was not as close with the Eagles' duo unable to defend Embry and Rautiainen, losing 21-15.
For the second time this season, Aryana Fazelina (Weston, Fla.) and Montgomery Sauter (Columbia, S.C.) made an appearance at the No. 2 spot. Emily Bowen and Hannah Tannone defeated the Eagles' pairing in back-to-back sets 21-13, 21-14
The new top-seeded pairing of Kelly Hughes (Woodbridge, Va.) and Summer Coulter (El Paso, Texas) fell quickly in the first set 21-6. Carlee Baxter and Amber Lake carried momentum into the second set and took the match 21-15.
Dual Two: Missouri Baptist 5, C-N 0
Catherine Cook (Morristown, Tenn.) and Lexy Headley (Sharps Chapel, Tenn.) made their first appearance in a top-five match as the duo faced Rachel Pool and Pachel Luebbers. While the two provided a battle and managed to stay within reach, they could not make the most of their outing, start the day with a straight-set loss, 21-13 and 21-18.
At the No. 4 spot, Depetro and Struewing lost a pair of sets to Mallory Moran and Maggie Sorenson, 2-13 and 21-10, leading to Seymour and Williams pairing up again at the third-spot to take on Sarah Wilson and Kelly Wilson. C-N's duo fell in near identical straight-sets, 21-11 and 21-10.
The first set of the second-seeded matchup saw Fazelnia and Sauter come close to an opening victory against Kamden Maas and Caterina Cigarini but the Spartans' pairing had the final push for extra points with a 23-2 win. The second set saw a larger margin of defeat for the Eagles as Missouri Baptist's duo was successful, 21-14.
The top seeded-match was the closest in the dual. Hughes and Coulter fell in the first set, 21-10, to Marion Couraud and Sarah Bolton but stormed back in the second set with a 21-16 win to force the final match into a third-set tiebreaker. The final set remained close but ultimately fell in favor of the Spartans, 15-13.
Carson-Neman now enjoys over a week away from competition before hosting Lincoln Memorial on April 14. That dual will begin at noon at the C-N Sand Courts.
