Mocs beaten by Western Carolina volleyball team in season finale - Volleyball
The final game of the season turned out to be a bitter experience for Chattanooga women’s volleyball team as the Mocs were challenged by the Catamounts of Western Carolina University, who sent the home squad to defeat in five sets. The Maclellan Gym in Chattanooga,
Tennessee hosted the match on Sunday, November 13. Western Carolina team posted 3-2 (25-27, 25-19, 22-25, 25-22, 15-12) on board and declared match victory over Mocs.
Seniors Carrie Minogue, Brittany Lysik and Rebecca Stoltz put up a great effort and led Western Carolina to triumph. With the help of victory against Chattanooga, the Catamounts reserved a berth in the Southern Conference Volleyball Tournament for the first
time since 2006.
Opening set of the match imitated the see-saw battle as none of the teams could grab substantial lead. Long rallies were exchanged and score soared up with close gap. Catamounts’ Carrie Minogue offered solid blocks to Chattanooga attackers and saved many
crucial points. However, UTC continued with attacking shots until the end of first set. They managed to overcome the guest team and secured first set with slight margin of two points, 27-25.
After dropping the first set, Catamounts fought back aggressively. They regrouped and targeted the rare openings in the opponent’s half. The Mocs did not lose easily and resisted. Rebecca Stoltz and Abbey Scroggins did exceptionally well for WCU in the second
set, while the Mocs could not carry the momentum and ended up losing second set with six points. Visiting team scored 25-19 and equalled the game score, 1-1.
In the next two sets, both teams exchanged equal points and set up the fifth set to determine the winner. Western Carolina displayed better play in the final set and grabbed match victory by 3-2.
The winning coach, Karen Glover, expressed delight with her team’s victory. She stated: "I am really proud of how this team developed throughout the season. The seniors have been through a lot in their careers here and I'm glad they are rewarded with a trip
to the conference playoffs this year. This will be a great learning experience for our underclassmen as well."
On the other hand, the mentor of Mocs Travis Filer said: "I was really proud of how we fought for most of the match. Unfortunately, it was not enough and I think that if we are as focused in that fourth set at the beginning, then we really take control and
have an opportunity to win in four because we knew that the pressure was on them."
Western Carolina will return to action on coming Saturday. They are scheduled to take Furman, the No. 2 seed from the North, in the first round of the SoCon Tournament at to Samford University.
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