JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Postseason play opens Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. inside of Holt Fieldhouse as fourth-seeded Carson-Newman hosts fifth-seeded Mars Hill in the quarterfinals of the 2019 South Atlantic Conference Women's Volleyball Championships.
Carson-Newman (22-7) is 31-27 in the SAC Tournament all-time including a pair of league titles in 2000 and 2002. The Eagles have appeared in five title outings in 2000, 2002, 2007, 2009 and 2017 recording a 2-3 mark. Each victory for C-N has come in straight sets while the losses came to Wingate in three and four frames respectively and Queens in four games.
Eight schools have won a SAC Tournament Championship since 1990. Of those seven programs, Mars Hill (15-14) and Lenoir-Rhyne are the only two that have not won multiple titles. Wingate leads the way with 13 championships followed by six from Presbyterian, three by Catawba and two each from Carson-Newman and Gardner-Webb.
This season is the third straight year that the Orange and Blue host the four versus five matchup beating Tusculum in four sets in 2017 and Lenoir-Rhyne in straight stanzas in 2018. A win over the Lions would notch the program record for home wins in a season passing the 13 of the 2002 team that set the school record with 31 wins.
The two clubs have squared off 64 times prior to Tuesday night with C-N holding a 40-24 all-time lead. There is a rich history between the two programs in the conference tournament. The quarterfinal affair will be the ninth match in the SAC Tournament with each team winning four.
The last time the two clubs faced off in the SAC Tournament came on Nov. 14, 2014 when the Eagles swept the Lions in Hickory, N.C. during the quarterfinal round. Rachel Harper finished the day with 16 kills on a .317 hitting clip and 13 digs.
In the two meetings this season, each team won on their home floor with C-N taking home a sweep 10 days ago. In 16 three-set matches this year, the Eagles posted their highest kills total, 44, and digs, 61, in that meeting. Mars Hill pounded out 54 kills and registered 125 digs, both four-set highs against the Eagles, in its win.
Coach Tony Fontanelle's team had lost four straight matches before sweeping Coker in the regular-season finale. In fact, the Lions have not beaten a team with a winning record in nine matches since beating Tusculum on Oct. 25. Mars Hill has not defeated a team on the road that had a winning record entering the affair.
No team in the nation posts more digs per set than Mars Hill's 21.22 on the year. Ully Martins leads the league and ranks 12th in the country with 5.83 digs per set. She has 47 total scoops against the Eagles this year with her 34 on Sept. 17 the highest total by a C-N foe this year.
As a team, the club ranks 262nd in aces per set at 1.07 and 203rd in hitting percentage with a .159 clip. Despite the point-scoring struggles, outside hitter Sarah Goddard ranks fourth in the conference with 307 smashes and 19 double-digit efforts.
Tuesday evening's broadcast will feature a live video stream on the Eagle Sports Network starting 10 minutes prior to first serve by visiting cnaeagles.com/live to watch all of the action from Holt Fieldhouse.
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