BUIES CREEK, N.C. – The Furman volleyball team wrapped up play at the Fairfield Inn and Suites Dunn Campbell Invitational Saturday splitting a pair of matches with the Ball State Cardinals and Campbell Camels at Gore Arena/Pope Convocation Center.
Furman opened the day with a 3-1 loss to Ball State before bouncing back with a 3-1 victory against Campbell.
The Paladins' record moves to 5-4 on the season while the Cardinals stayed undefeated at 8-0 and the Camels dropped to 3-5 overall.
Match 1 – Furman 1, Ball State 3
Ava Smith finished with 16 kills to lead Ball State to a 3-1 (25-16, 25-16, 23-25, 25-18) victory over Furman in the Paladins' first match of the day.
Izzy Castelloe hit .441 for the contest and tied Smith with a match high 16 kills.
Emily Navarro contributed 19 assists and seven digs.
Kennedy Seekford had a team high 22 digs while
Ashley Stein contributed 12 and
Lauren Haynes 10.
Kacie Moore had five blocks.
Smith turned in a .316 hitting percentage to go with her 16 kills for the Cardinals and Tiffany Snook added 10. Audrey Geer poured in nine kills and 14 digs. Lindsey Green and Reese Axness combined for 46 assists and 15 digs. Defensively, Sophie Ledbetter led all players with 26 digs.
Furman was held to just .034 hitting in the first set with Ball State earning the 25-16 victory. Castelloe had four kills to lead the Paladins with Navarro adding four assists and Seekford five digs. The Cardinals scored the set's first four points and held an early 12-7 lead. Furman came back and trimmed its deficit down to 12-10 following a combination block from Castelloe and
Rebekah Buchholz and a Ball State attack error. The Paladins would be outscored 13-6 the rest of the way after the Cardinals broke the set open with an 8-3 run.
Furman would be held to .000 hitting during the second set as Ball State registered another 25-16 triumph. Haynes, Moore, and
Campbell Woods each totaled two kills, Navarro four assists, and Seekford six digs. The Paladins took a quick 4-3 advantage when the Cardinals answered with a 10-5 run to hold a 13-9 lead. Seekford's service ace got Furman to within 18-15 before Ball State outscored the Paladins, 7-1, to end the set.
The third set saw Furman respond with a 25-23 win and cut its deficit down to 2-1. The Paladins boasted a .256 hitting mark in the set highlighted by Castelloe's nine kills on .692 hitting. Navarro dished out eight assists and Seekford tallied five digs. Furman raced out to a 7-2 lead and later held a 15-8 advantage at the media timeout following a kill by Castelloe. The Cardinals came back courtesy of a 10-3 run and evened the score at 18-18. The Paladins responded with five of the next seven points capped when Castelloe's kill made the score 23-20. Castelloe captured the set with her kill.
Ball State clinched the match with a 25-18 victory in the fourth set. Four different Furman players had all eight of its kills,
Morgan Baldridge contributed four assists and Stein seven digs. The Paladin offense turned in a .048 hitting performance in the set. The teams split the initial eight points when Buchholz and
Amber Watson teamed up for a block to give Furman a 5-4 cushion. A Cardinal attack error later tied the score at 9-9. The Paladins trailed 14-12 midway when Ball State registered four consecutive points to go ahead 18-12. Furman staged a late rally and was down, 20-18, after Watson connected on a kill. The Cardinals finished by scoring five straight points.
The Paladins concluded the contest hitting .090 and compiled 37 kills, 37 assists, and 65 digs.
Match 2 – Furman 3, Campbell 1
Castelloe and
Ashtan Dodson both recorded 12 kills apiece to lead Furman to a 3-1 (25-16, 19-25, 25-19, 27-25) win over Campbell in the tournament finale.
The duo both hit over .200 with Castelloe posting a .256 clip. Navarro collected her team leading sixth double-double of the season with 23 assists and 11 digs while Baldridge totaled 15 assists and eight digs. Seekford finished with a match high 28 digs. Making her first appearance of the year, preseason All-SoCon selection
Tennyson Gorman had a match high 10 blocks.
Victoria Tupy and Ella Duong both registered double-doubles for the Camels. Tupy led the team with 13 kills and added 14 digs while Duong contributed 11 kills and 19 digs. Hannah Pattie turned in 17 assists and Aubree Fernandez 25 digs.
The Paladins' defense held Campbell to .023 hitting in the opening set en route to a 25-16 victory. Dodson had a team best three kills, Baldridge and Navarro three assists each, and Seekford four digs. Neither team led by more than two points over the initial 20 points when a Camel attack error gave Furman a 12-9 lead. The Paladins would take a 15-9 advantage into the media break and closed out the set on a 7-1 run. Furman scored the last four points capped by two consecutive Campbell attack errors.
The Camels responded in the second set with a 25-19 win to even the match at 1-1. The Paladins posted a .237 hitting mark but saw Campbell turn in a .469 clip. Dodson, Castelloe, and Woods combined for 10 kills, Baldridge and Navarro 10 assists, and Seekford added five digs. The Camels posted four of the first five points and held a 15-10 lead midway. Furman had evened the score at 6-6, but Campbell came back with a 9-4 run. Campbell led 19-12 when the Paladins rallied back to within four points, 22-18, on a combination block from Dodson and Gorman. The Camels ended the set scoring three of the final four points.
Furman then had a 25-19 win of its own in the third set after limiting Campbell to .042 hitting. Castelloe and Dodson both had three kills, Baldridge and Navarro five assists, and Seekford tallied seven digs. Gorman and Watson gave the Paladins an early 8-4 lead and then took a 15-8 advantage at the media timeout off another combination block by Dodson and Moore. The Camels cut Furman's lead down to 21-18 before being held to only one point the rest of the way. The Paladins captured the set following a Campbell attack error.
Furman clinched the match in the fourth set, having to go into extra points for the 27-25 triumph. The Paladin defense again kept the Camels under .100 hitting as Castelloe had five kills, Navarro 10 assists, and Seekford 11 digs. Furman led by as many as eight points, 10-2, early on after Dodson's kill. Leading 15-10 at the media timeout, the Paladins saw Campbell come back and tie the score at 23-23 to cap off a 13-8 run. The teams exchanged the next five points when Castelloe was part of the final two points, a kill and combination block, to give Furman the win.
Up Next
The Paladins head to Clemson, S.C., next week, September 17-18, for a pair of matches with Clemson and New Hampshire at Jervey Gym.
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