Volleyball Earns Road Sweep of UNCG

Fifth-year senior Merry Gebel recorded her sixth double-double of the season and 62nd of her career as Western Carolina swept UNCG in Southern Conference action on Wednesday night inside Fleming Gymnasium. The Catamounts won the match by scores of 25-18, 25-16, and 25-20.

With the win, WCU improves to 12-7 overall and 5-2 in league play while UNCG drops to 8-12 and 2-5.

Gebel recorded a match-best 12 kills and tallied 10 digs. She also had a strong night on the serving line, tying a career-best with four service aces. Bailey Hartsough and Eden Punch added 10 kills each. Destinee Dorsey tallied a team-best 14 digs while Sydney Carlson dished out 19 assists.

Mya Wood led UNCG with nine kills and added seven digs. Ella Voegele was credited with 14 digs while Gabriela McHugh had 26 assists.

Tied at 12 in the first set, the Catamounts took three of the next four points to lead 15-13 at the media timeout. After a Robertson kill cut the WCU lead to 15-14, the Catamounts extended their lead to 19-15 thanks to a Brooklyn Poling kill and led by no fewer than three points for the rest of the set which ended on a Hartsough kill.

The Catamounts grabbed a 6-3 lead in the second set thanks to a Punch kill and stretched their advantage to 11-6 thanks to a Hartsough kill which prompted a Spartan timeout. UNCG cut the Catamount advantage to one point on two occasions during the middle portions of the set before WCU used a 5-1 run to create some separation and clinched the set on a Poling kill.

A Wood service ace gave the hosts a 9-3 lead in the third set. Trailing 14-9, WCU took eight of the next nine points to grab a 17-15 lead which it never relinquished. UNCG pulled within a point on a Catamount error before a 6-2 spurt allowed WCU to gain control of the set before ending the match on a Punch kill.

WCU wraps up the first half of the league schedule on Friday, traveling to Furman for a 6 p.m. match.