VIDEO: Cat Collins Interview

VIDEO: Maddie Hurst Interview

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman battled back-and-forth with Anderson on Friday night, dropping the first five-set match inside Holt Fieldhouse.

Carson-Newman (16-10, 12-6 SAC) seemed to break out of its woes, fighting tooth and nail with Anderson (18-9, 13-5 SAC), but dropped its fourth straight match in five sets, now awaiting Mars Hill's result on Saturday afternoon to find out who, and where it plays in the SAC Quarterfinal on Tuesday.

"It was incredible to see this team bounce back from what they experienced the last two weeks and play like that." Carson-Newman volleyball head coach Cat Collins said. "It's not about who we play anymore, it's about us."

The two Taylors led Carson-Newman offensively as Taylor Adams (Covington, Ga.) and Taylor Keeran (Galion, Ohio) earned 14 and 13 kills, respectively. Setter Blair Cherry (Knoxville, Tenn.) found her fourth-straight double-double with 44 assists and 12 digs.

Defensively, Trinity Hafey (Grand Junction, Colo.) led the team in digs with 18. But Maddie Hurst (Blaine, Tenn.) shined with ten blocks on the night, a solo and nine assisted. She becomes the first Eagle since 2022, when Taylor Keeran did so against Lenoir-Rhyne, to accomplish the feat.

"We work in practice on our block, and I think it showed," Hurst said. "My pins were really setting up well, so it allowed me to get over and press and be in the right spots."

First Set (25-23, C-N) – Carson-Newman shined, taking the first five points of the set before the Trojans fought back, leading to a back-and-forth battle down the stretch. Carson-Newman got it to set point before Anderson chipped away with the following two points to threaten the Eagles. But, a swing from Emerson Ahsmuhs (Placentia, Calif.) found the floor and gave C-N the early set advantage.

Second Set (25-22, AU)—This was another battle that both sides struggled to control. Both Carson-Newman and Anderson had high side-out percentages, leading to very few scoring runs of longer than three points. The Eagles and Trojans alternated points for most of the set, but Anderson could pull away with a strong swing from Brantley Chipley, ending the set in favor of the Trojans.

Third Set (25-12, AU) – Anderson flexed its muscle in the lone blowout set of the night. Things got out of hand quickly for C-N, falling behind 8-1 to the Trojans, who never trailed. Anderson took multiple scoring runs and fought off a small comeback attempt by Carson-Newman in the late stages to take a 2-1 set lead.

Fourth Set (25-21, C-N) – With their backs against the wall, the Eagles battled in a set they needed to win to keep the match alive. The set featured nine ties and five lead changes, the last a tie at 20 apiece. That's when Carson-Newman pulled away, winning five of the following six points with two kills by Adams highlighting the stretch and forcing a deciding fifth set for the first time inside Holt Fieldhouse this season.

Fifth Set (16-14, AU) – The back-and-forth theme of the match continued into the fifth with nine ties and three lead changes, but most of the drama came after both teams had already scored ten points in the frame. After an 11-all tie, Anderson took the following two points to jump to a lead before Carson-Newman responded with two of its own. Alternating points over the next three rallies pushed the set to a 15-14 match point for Anderson, just the second time this season Carson-Newman has played in a fifth set over 15 points. However, Brantley Chipley found her 16^th and final kill of the night to secure Anderson's spot as the three-seed at the SAC Tournament.

After Mars Hill secured a reverse sweep over Newberry on Friday night, with one match left to play on Saturday afternoon against Coker, it appears the Lions will be the Eagles' opponent in the SAC Quarterfinals; it is just a matter of where.

Should the Lions defeat Coker on Saturday, the Eagles will travel to Mars Hill on Tuesday for the quarterfinals. However, an upset from the Cobras would see Mars Hill make a return trip to Holt Fieldhouse, where the Eagles would seek revenge.

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