Spencer Mathis
Assistant Director of Communications (Athletics)
Congratulations to Nicole Klucharich of women's volleyball and Thomas Kleinpenning of men's soccer for earning the esteemed Mountain Lions of the Week honors!
Nicole Klucharich and the Mountain Lions women's volleyball team have battled hard to start their 2024 campaign. Young Harris is off to a 0-5 start, but the squad has shown promise, especially in their Conference Carolinas bouts. This past week, the Mountain Lions played two matches, with each team belonging to the Conference Carolinas. The first match was on Friday (Sept. 20) evening against Erskine College on the road; the final match of the week took place at home on Saturday (Sept. 21) against Emmanuel University.
The first game against Erskine College took place in Due West, South Carolina on Friday (Sept. 20) evening. The Mountain Lions lost sets one and two but stayed alive in set three and eventually forced a fourth set. Nicole Klucharich played in three sets during the match against the Flying Fleet and put up impressive numbers. Klucharich recorded eight kills, 20 total attacks, one assist, one service ace, two blocks, five digs, and a team high 10 points. The Mountain Lions eventually fell to Erskine, 3-1 after forcing set four.
In the ladder match versus Emmanuel University, the Mountain Lions played at The Harp Recreation & Commencement Center for their home opener. The Lions of Emmanuel University sit near the top of the Conference Carolinas Southwest standings. The Mountain Lions battled hard against the Lions, falling to Emmanuel three sets to none. Young Harris started the match off rocky, losing set one 25-16, but set two saw a much-improved result. In set two, YHC clawed their way to a 22-22 tie late, but Emmanuel would score the final three points in a row to take set two. Set three ended, 25-20, with Young Harris holding their own until the very end against a top conference contender.
In the match versus Emmanuel, Nicole Klucharich dominated, putting up big numbers from start to finish. Klucharich recorded 13 kills, 30 total attacks, two service aces, one block, nine digs, and a team-leading 15.5 points. Overall, in the two matches played by Klucharich and the Mountain Lions last week, Klucharich registered: 21 kills, 50 total attacks, one assist, three service aces, three blocks, 14 digs, and 25.5 points. Nicole Klucharich earned Mountain Lion of the Week honors for her performance versus tough Conference Carolinas opponents Erskine and Emmanuel.
Thomas Kleinpenning and the Young Harris College men's soccer team are off to a roaring start to their 2024 campaign. The Mountain Lions are currently 3-0-2 overall through five matches and are 2-0 in conference play. This past week, the YHC men's soccer team only played one match, and it was against Conference Carolinas opponent Emmanuel University on Saturday (Sept. 21) in Young Harris. In their first conference home match of the season, the Mountain Lions dominated the first half, putting up two goals within the first 30 minutes of the match.
The first goal against Emmanuel University came in the 17th minute from Sacha De Corte, and the assist came from midfielder Thomas Kleinpenning. The corner was set up perfectly by Kleinpenning, and the ball found the back of the net after ricocheting off De Corte and an Emmanuel defender. In the 29th minute, Kleinpenning and the Mountain Lions struck gold for the final time in the match. A perfect cross to the inside from Kleinpenning set up Sergio Llopart in front of the Lions goalkeeper with the defender behind him; the pass landed directly in front of Llopart and one touch put the Mountain Lions ahead of the Lions 2-0.
After the second goal of the match, Kleinpenning and the Mountain Lions never looked back and shut down Emmanuel's offense for the remaining 60 minutes. In the match, Thomas Kleinpenning recorded two assists and added one shot on goal in just 55 minutes on the Mountain Lions new pitch. The performance by Thomas aided the Mountain Lions to their third win of the season and earned Kleinpenning Mountain Lion of the Week honors.
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