Cat Collins Interview

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Break out the brooms, as for the second straight match, Carson-Newman sweeps its opponent, taking down Limestone 3-0.

Carson-Newman (7-3, 3-0 SAC) could not be stopped, forcing Limestone (3-4, 2-2 SAC) into mistake after mistake. This led to the Eagles' second straight match in which they forced their opponent to a negative hitting percentage, as the Saints hit -.031 in the match.

Taylor Keeran (Galion, Ohio) earned Food City Player of the Match honors, collecting nine kills and seven blocks, leading the Eagles in both categories on the night.

"Our blocking was phenomenal." Carson-Newman volleyball head coach Cat Collins said. "It's definitely something we practice. We work on it all the time, every day, and really focusing on stopping [Limestone's] fast tempos to the pin."

It's a block party in Mossy Creek! @blaircherry6 and @KeeranTaylor connect for the big block. It's the eighth block of the night for C-N!

�� @CarsonNewmanVB 12
⚜ Limestone 7
Second Set

�� https://t.co/FlqNXFKieD
�� https://t.co/NrrVjmN2ur pic.twitter.com/klE7GdpxKs

— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) September 24, 2024

First Set (25-21, C-N) – After losing the first two points of the match, Carson-Newman went on an 8-0 run and jumped out to an early lead, taking advantage of multiple Limestone errors to lead by as many as seven points, causing Limestone head coach Brandon Skweres to call both his timeouts early in the set. However, Limestone crawled back into the set, narrowing the gap to just one before the Eagles pulled away to take the first frame. The Saints committed 14 attacking errors and a service error to hand Carson-Newman 15 points. Of note, the Eagles collected five blocks in the opening set with four coming from Keeran.  

Second Set (25-14, C-N) – The Eagles went wire-to-wire, never letting Limestone take the lead in the second frame. The Saints hit -.118 in the set with ten more errors, while Carson-Newman tallied five blocks and 14 kills to give the Eagles their most dominant set of the night. Blair Cherry (Knoxville, Tenn.), Blake Cherry (Cookeville, Tenn.), Kylee Oldenburger (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), and Keeran each collected three kills in the set.  

Third Set (26-24, C-N) – Limestone wouldn't go down without a fight, storming back in the third set with 13 ties and nine lead changes. The Saints would tie the set at 24 apiece before back-to-back kills from Maddie Hurst (Blaine, Tenn.) and Blair Cherry put the match away and lifted Carson-Newman to 3-0 in SAC play for the second time in three seasons.

Highlights – Taylor Keeran led the charge in both kills and blocks, just a kill and three blocks away from the first kill-block double-double for the Eagles since 2011. Blair Cherry was the leading setter, acquiring 27 assists on the night, while libero Bennett McCombs (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) led C-N in digs with 14.

Carson-Newman has won seven of its last eight meetings with the Saints and leads the all-time series 9-2.

The Eagles hit the road for a match with rival Tusculum on Friday, Sept. 27. First serve is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The next day, on Saturday afternoon, the Eagles are back in Holt Fieldhouse to take on UVA-Wise. Fans not making it to the match can watch with a subscription on FloSports or follow along on X @CN_Eagles.