VIDEO: Ashley Tiernan Interview
In a match that featured 29 tied scores and 15 lead changes, the Eagles fell to Anderson in a hard-fought battle on Saturday, Apr. 3.
Anderson took the first two sets by scores of 25-22 and 25-21. A wild back-and-forth third set was won by Carson-Newman 29-27, keeping the Eagles alive. The Trojans finished the match off with a strong 8-2 run to close out the fourth set 25-22, earning the 3-1 victory and handing Carson-Newman their third loss in the last four matches.
"I saw a lot of fight and a lot of heart today," says head coach Ashley Tiernan. "We knew that tonight was going to be tough. They're very refined in attacking and blocking and it was going to come down to stuff we did right or they did right and tonight it just didn't fall our way."
Megan Oldenburger and Erin Edwards combined for 29 kills. Oldenburger also recorded two service aces and 12 digs, giving the Cedar Rapids, Iowa native her fifth double-double of the season. Edwards recorded 14 kills and tallied three blocks in the matinee contest.
"Both of those girls have been a tremendous part of this program for the past four years," says Tiernan. "We hope every match they can get double digit kills. They've been leaders when it comes to making those shots and finding those spots on the court and everyone rallies behind them."
Madison Rademacher recorded a season high 13 digs and had 15 assists to record her second double-double of the year.
The Eagles tallied 10 service aces against the Trojans. Kaina Roehrkasse and Hayden Barton lead the team with three each. It is the first time this season that Carson-Newman tallied double digit service aces. The last time the Eagles recorded double digit service aces in a loss was oddly enough on October 25, 2019 when the team finished with 11, also in a match against Anderson.
Carson-Newman was on fire to begin the first set, taking advantage of three attack errors by Anderson to jump out to a 6-0 lead. The Trojans answered with a 5-0 run, thanks in part to two kills by Tabita Wheeler, cutting the lead down to 6-5.
The two squads would trade points for most of the set, with Anderson using a 4-0 run to take their first lead of the match 16-15 after four straight errors by the Eagles.
Neither team took a lead larger than three points until the end of the set, when the Trojans used a 5-0 run to close out the opening frame thanks to kills by Noelle Knutsen and Maya Learmonth and set-ending errors by the Eagles, giving Anderson the 25-22 win.
Anderson would jump out to a quick 3-1 lead in set two, but a 5-1 run by the Eagles thanks to three errors by the Trojans gave Carson-Newman and 6-4 lead.
Both sides traded points again, not letting either side grab the momentum or too large of a lead until Anderson used a quick 3-0 spurt to go up 18-15.
The Trojan lead swelled to as large as 22-17, but a 3-0 run that included kills by Taylor Keeran and Oldenburger cut the lead down to 22-20.
Despite another kill by Oldenburger, Maya Learmonth tallied back-to-back kills to close out the set and give Anderson a 2-0 advantage with a 25-21 win.
Anderson looked to run away with the third set, using a 6-1 run early to take a 10-6 lead after two service aces by Tabitha Wheeler. The Eagles responded well, going on a 6-0 run to take a 12-10 lead thanks to two service aces by Roehrkasse and kills from Keeran and Oldenburger.
The teams traded points again, until Joy Rhodes came off the bench to record three straight kills to put Carson-Newman up 17-14.
A short spurt by Anderson lead to the Trojans tying the contest and points were traded once again before the set was eventually tied at 23.
Anderson had two chances for match point in the third set, but an error by Sadie Kluner and a kill by Edwards kept the match alive for the Eagles. Carson-Newman would eventually take a 27-26 lead before Kluner redeemed herself, tying the set back at 27 apiece.
The Trojans could not take advantage, recording two straight errors to drop the set 29-27, keeping the match alive for the Eagles.
"That set came down to just wanting it and fighting hard and digging into the gameplan," says Tiernan. "We talked a lot about moving our shots around and making them guess against us."
The third set is the second set of the season that did not end with the winning team scoring 25 points. UVA-Wise won the third set from Carson-Newman on Mar. 9 by a score of 26-24. It is the longest set that the Eagles have won since knocking off Augusta in the first set of the 2019 NCAA Southeast Regional Final by a score of 27-25 en route to the 3-0 victory and region championship.
The two teams again traded points to start the fourth set, but Anderson was able to start pulling away and took a 9-4 lead following kills by Regan Duty, Tabitha Wheeler, and Knutsen.
The lead stayed just out of the Eagles grasp until a 5-0 run thanks to a pair of kills by Oldenburger, and kills by Rhodes and Edwards gave Carson-Newman a 15-13 advantage.
Carson-Newman used their momentum to swell the lead to 19-15 after errors by the Trojans. The Eagles could not take advantage, and a 6-0 spurt by Anderson thanks to three costly errors by Carson-Newman gave the Trojans a 23-20 lead.
With the match on the line, Keeran earned a kill to keep hope alive for the Eagles, but a kill by Learmonth ended the contest, giving Anderson the set 25-22 and gave the Trojans their seventh straight victory.
With the win, Anderson locks up the two seed in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament. Carson-Newman finishes the regular season at 6-3 and enters the tournament as the three-seed.
"All the teams are now 0-0," says Tiernan. "All eight teams are coming in with a fire and a fight within them. There's a different energy no matter who we play and we have to bring a different energy with us."
Postseason play begins for the Eagles on Tuesday, Apr. 6, as they host sixth-seeded Limestone. The Eagles knocked off the Saints earlier in the year inside Holt Fieldhouse 3-0 thanks to 12 kills by Edwards. Coverage can be found on the Eagle Sports Network with the match set to begin at 7:00 PM in Holt Fieldhouse.
