JEFFERSON CITY, - Tenn. - Carson-Newman volleyball departs to Aiken, S.C., for matches against Georgia College (10-11, 0-7 PBC) and USC Aiken (12-4, 2-3 PBC) on Saturday at 1 and 4 p.m.
Last week, the Eagles fell in a five-set thriller to Wingate at Holt Fieldhouse. On Tuesday they fell to Tusculum at The Pioneer Arena, leaving them 8-10 on the 2023 season. C-N has shown dominance on home turf (4-1) but have struggled in road matches (2-5) this year. The last time they won an away matchup was sweeping UVA-Wise on Sept. 20.
To open up Saturday, the Eagles face Georgia College at 1 p.m. Carson-Newman's history with Georgia College links back to 2016. The Eagles have won the last three matches against the Bobcats, leading overall 3-2. In their singular meeting in 2022, Carson-Newman swept Georgia College with scores of 32-30, 25-17, and 25-11 at the SAC/PBC crossover.
The Bobcats are 10-11 on the year and have lost the last seven matches straight. They are 3-4 on the road and 3-4 in neutral-site games.
In all 15 statistical areas ranked by the NCAA, the Bobcats stand in the top five in the Peach Belt Conference, highlighted by a first-place standing in total team attacks (2,560). The unit averages 14.79 digs per set, 9.65 assists per set, 10.62 kills per set, and 1.81 blocks per set.
Outside hitter Rachel Machovec is third in their league for kills per set (3.19), points per set (3.78), and total kills (230). Riese Johnson leads the PBC with her score of 35 service aces.
Georgia College was swept last week by USC Aiken by scores of 25-20, 25-23, and 26-24. Georgia College's Rachel Machovec and USCA's Emily Lammers both collected 12 kills on the evening. Mary Kate Kotzin notched four blocks and Olivia Alvarez recorded 16 digs.
Saturday at 4 p.m. marks the second meeting with USC Aiken this season. Their first meeting at the USC Aiken Invitational on Sept. 9 ended in just three sets in favor of the Pacers. Carson-Newman trails Aiken 7-11 overall but leads 3-2 since Tiernan came on as head coach. Coach Glenn Cox's squad is undefeated on their home court and 12-4 on the season overall.
Aiken led the Eagles in kills (42-34), hitting percentage (.182-.120), service aces (6-3), digs (64-53), and assists (38-32). Carson-Newman led the Pacers in attacks (125-121), and they tied for total blocks (7-7).
Similarly to Georgia College, USC Aiken stands in the top five of their conference in all 15 statistical areas ranked by the NCAA. They are second in aces per set (2.16), assists per set (11.90), digs per set (17.39), and team attacks per set (37.05).
Sadie McKay leads their conference for aces per set (0.62), and Gyongyver Araczki leads in hitting percentage (0.347). Mallory Barash is second in the PBC in assists per set (9.41).
First serve for the Saturday matches are scheduled at 1 and 4 p.m. at the Convocation Center. Live stats and a live stream will be available for free at pacersports.com/coverage.
