HARROGATE, Tenn. – Carson-Newman won its 10th season opener in the last 12 years Friday afternoon at Mary Mars Gymnasium toppling King (Tenn.) in four sets 28-26, 16-25, 25-20 and 25-19.
The Eagles (1-0) have now won three of the last four meetings against the Tornado (0-1) as nine different players notched at least one kill on the day.
In her collegiate debut, redshirt-freshman setter Elena Vazquez (Riverside, Calif.) collected a double-double piling up 14 assists and 11 digs. Senior setter Anna Patton (Franklin, Tenn.) chipped in 14 helpers and nine scoops.
A trio of Eagles picked up a team-leading nine kills as sophomore middle blocker Alex Biro (Ootlewah, Tenn.) hit .692 with nine kills and zero attack errors. Freshmen Megan Oldenburger (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) and Emily Harnischfeger (Macedon, N.Y.) also collected nine smashes.
Sophomore libero Morgan Ballard (Weaverville, N.C.) tied for match high with a career best 22 digs to go along with four assists.
As a unit, Dave Franklin's team hit .130 on 37 kills with nine total blocks and 69 digs versus King's .095 attack percentage, three rejections and 76 digs.
The Eagles opened the year on a roll reeling off nine of the first 13 rallies of the season to prompt a timeout by the Tornado. King chiseled at the deficit ultimately using a 9-2 sequence to capture an 18-14 lead. The margin was four at 22-18 when Carson-Newman won five straight points to go on top. King staved off a set point and C-N battled past two set points before winning the final three rallies to go on top 1-0.
King posted a .312 hitting percentage in the second set and cruised out to a 13-4 lead before Franklin called for time. The closest C-N would get the rest of the stanza was 13-7 as Huddleston tied the match with a smash.
Carson-Newman came out in the third set with a vengeance scoring nine of the first 10 points, eight of which came with junior Natalie Harris (Monroe, N.C.) on serve. King closed the gap to three points at 13-10 before the Eagles won six of the next seven to gain separation. A kill from Oldenburger sealed the set.
In the fourth frame a good start from Carson-Newman helped pave the way for as the unit won five of the first six points. The lead swelled to eight points at 18-10 as King could not climb within six points the rest of the match. Harnischfeger finished the outing off with a smash down the line.
The win puts an end to a 13-match losing streak dating back to Oct. 14, 2016 when Carson-Newman bested Augusta in five sets at Holt Fieldhouse.
King was led by a pair of players as Becca Huddleston tallied 18 kills and 16 digs and Cathy Scaniffe racked up 18 kills and 16 digs.
Abby Anderson handed out 38 assists and Amy Serowski led four players in double figures for digs with 22.
Match two of the weekend for the Eagles is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. against Lee inside of Mary Mars Gym. Match coverage can be found with live stats and video courtesy of the Lincoln Memorial staff.
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