After a week off due to the effects of Hurricane Helene, App State volleyball traveled Friday to Norfolk, Virginia, and split the weekend series against the Old Dominion Monarchs.
App State started the weekend with a convincing four-set victory on Friday, 25-18, 21-25, 25-22, 25-11.
The Mountaineers came out strong in the first set, going on multiple 4-0 scoring runs to pull away from the Monarchs and take an early lead.
After Old Dominion won the second set, the Mountaineers established control of the match with an 11-4 run midway through the third set, highlighted by excellent play from the freshmen.
Kills from freshman outside hitter Bella Hutchens and back-to-back service aces from freshman right side Elise Marchal allowed App State to pull away and keep the Monarchs at arm’s’ reach until a kill from senior outside hitter Lulu Ambrose — one of a team-high 12 on the day — clinched the set.
App State capped off the match with an absolute drubbing of Old Dominion in the fourth set. The Mountaineers began the set with a 7-1 run which featured three straight service aces from star junior middle blocker Maya Winterhoff. Winterhoff had another signature performance, racking up nine kills, five blocks and four service aces. App State ended the match on a 3-0 run to cement an excellent match for the Mountaineers.
Saturday was a different story, as App State lost in straight sets, 13-25, 16-25, 21-25.
The Mountaineers could not get anything going, as the Monarchs went on seven runs of at least three points throughout the match, including a 6-0 run at the very start. Old Dominion won at least the first two points in every set, establishing a lead early and controlling the sets from there.
Winterhoff and Ambrose, two of the most talented players on the Mountaineers roster, had uncharacteristically quiet games and combined for just 10 kills, one service ace and one block. Marchal and Hutchens led the way with ten and nine kills respectively. Marchal also led the team in digs with 10.
Old Dominion deserves credit for bouncing back with a trouncing of an App State team loaded with talent after the Mountaineers defeated them the day before. The Monarchs had more kills, blocks, aces, assists and digs than the Mountaineers in the match. The silver lining for the Mountaineers is that the scores at the end of every set got progressively closer, once again showing they won’t go down without a fight.
App State’s record moves to 9-6 overall and 3-1 in conference play. The Mountaineers are tied for second in the Sun Belt East Division with Old Dominion and are scheduled to host rival Georgia Southern at the Holmes Convocation Center Friday and Saturday. Both games will stream live on ESPN+.
