JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. -- A road trip to an actual beach state will conclude the season for Carson-Newman beach volleyball as they travel to Tavares, Fla. this weekend for the 2019 AVCA Small College Championship.
This will be the second annual year of the American Volleyball Coaches Association Championships held at Hickory Point Beach at a newly constructed volleyball complex with twenty-one professional-grade courts. Carson-Newman will be one of twelve teams from NCAA Divisions II and III competing for a championship in addition to eight-team division comprised of teams that compete in the NAIA.
Friday will be the first day of competition for the Eagles and will consist of three matches. First thing in the morning C-N will take on the No. 5 seed, Florida Southern (11-12), an opponent they have seen before at the College of Charleston Tournament back in March. The Eagles fell in that contest 4-1 with the only win coming from the No. 1 flight consisting of Summer Coulter (El Paso, Texas) and Abby Struewing (Lebanon, Ohio). The pair took their match to a thrilling three sets and just scraped past Makena Wilson and Alex Montoya by three points in the third set.
The second match of the day will be against Spring Hill, a new opponent for the Eagles this season. The Badgers are 14-10 on the season and the No. 2 seed in the tournament. Last year they came in third place at the AVCA championships falling to Texas A&M Kingsville who later went on to win the championship.
The third and final match on Friday will be against Carson-Newman's neighbour, Lincoln Memorial University. The Eagles have faced the Railsplitters twice this season on their home courts but fell both times. C-N provided good competition in the first matchup but ended up just falling 3-2 with Struewing and Coulter again winning at the No. 1 flight in a three-set performance. Kelly Hughes (Woodbridge, Va.) and Aryana Fazelnia (Weston, Fla.) also won their dual at the No. 3 flight in yet another three-set match. The second matchup was not as successful for the Eagles as they fell 5-0. The 'Splitters are the No. 8 seed in the tournament with a 5-8 record overall this season.
The Eagles will face Florida Southern at 10 a.m., Spring Hill at 12 p.m. and LMU at 3 p.m. on Friday. The AVCA will be covering the event on social media (@AVCAvolleyball) and posting results online at www.avca.org throughout the weekend.
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