VIDEO: Dave Franklin Interview
Carson-Newman Volleyball Match Notes
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman looks to halt a six-match losing streak as Coker comes to town Friday night for a 7 p.m. first serve and Wingate stops by Holt Fieldhouse for a 5 p.m. start on Saturday in South Atlantic Conference action.
"We were just reviewing the film the last few days and you can see the growth from then until now," Carson-Newman coach Dave Franklin said. "As we go into the Coker match, I think we need to be more efficient with our shot work. I think we relied on the same shot too many times and allowed them to be pretty pesky defensively. I think we need to be better offensively and hit better shots. Wingate is a good opponent. There is a reason they are one of the top teams right now, tied for first place in the conference. They our going to push our consistency level."
Freshman outside hitter Marnie Streeter (Goldvein, Va.) looks to continue her recent string of success as she has recorded double-digit kills in each of the last five outings after having five contests in double figures in the first 18 matches.
"She is growing a lot and pushing herself," Franklin said. "Marnie is a physical athlete that hits it hard. She has really had to learn the nuances of the game and understand how to get kills. That kid has grown a lot and she has put a lot of effort into it. She's a kid that I've been on since day and she is starting to get the results now."
Carson-Newman (3-20, 2-13) won the first six meetings against Coker (11-12, 3-12) since the Cobras joined the league for the 2013 season as the Eagles dropped just two sets in those matches.
Coker picked up a five-set victory over C-N on its home floor in the first meeting this season on Sept. 23 to snap an 18-match losing streak against SAC foes.
Freshman outside hitter Abbie McFarlane (McKinney, Texas) led the charge with a career-best 21 kills. She hit .296 for the match. McFarlane is the first Eagle with a 20-kill performance since Molly Locke had 20 against Lenoir-Rhyne in last season's Southeast Region final.
Coker is having its most successful campaign as a member of the SAC with a 3-12 mark in league action after combining for a 2-64 mark in the first three seasons in the league.
The Cobras have dropped six consecutive SAC matches since beating Lenoir-Rhyne in four sets on Oct. 1. The last five matches have all been losses in three frames with the last set victory coming on Oct. 7 at Tusculum in the second set, a span of 17 sets.
During the recent stretch, Coker has failed to hit above .100 five times with its highest attack percentage being .118 against Wingate. The unit's .149 attack clip is 11th in the SAC and 221st in the nation.
The Cobras rank 18th in the country and second to Tusculum in the conference with 18.36 scoops per stanza. Kara Overholt is fifth in the SAC with 5.18 digs per set.
Wingate has the advantage in the all-time series history having won 44 of the 68 all-time meetings between the two schools including three straight victories in the series.
The 'Dogs swept C-N in the first meeting this year pounding out a .213 attack percentage with 61 digs, nine service aces and three total blocks compared to a .071 hitting clip, 49 digs, four service aces and three blocks.
Wingate (22-3, 14-2) enters the weekend having won three straight matches since losing to Anderson and Newberry. The night before coming to Mossy Creek, the Bulldogs will battle Lincoln Memorial in a match that should determine the regular season champion.
The Bulldogs lead the conference in nine different statistical categories ranking 15th nationally with 14 kills per set and 22nd in the country in attack percentage.
Abby Saehler is second in the league in kills per set with 3.38 and Lynnlee Mather is third in attack percentage at .298 and four in blocks per set with 0.99.
Friday night's match will be broadcast on cneagles.com/live as the Eagle Sports Network provides a high definition video stream of the match. Both matches will have live stats available at cneagles.com/livestats for fans to follow along with the action.
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