BOX SCORE
CHARLESTON, S.C. – No. 3 Radford closed out the first day of the 2011 Big South Tournament with a 3-0 sweep (25-15, 25-23, 25-18) of No. 6 High Point from the CSU Fieldhouse on the campus of Charleston Southern. The Highlanders (16-14) extended their winning streak to a season-high five matches, while earning their first league tournament win since 2001.
Radford, courtesy of its longest winning streak since 2002 (five matches), will advance to tomorrow's semifinal at 7:00 p.m. against No. 2 Winthrop, a 3-1 winner over No. 7 Coastal Carolina. The Eagles defeated the Highlanders, 3-0, in the only match up of the season between the two squads.
Radford received a balanced offensive with four attackers hitting above .300. It was led by all-freshmen selection
Rachel Wiechecki's (Wilmington, Del./Ursuline Academy) match-best 10 kills and .320 attack percentage. Middle blockers
Emma Deininger (Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven), the Big South Freshman of the Year, and senior
Carly Fleming (Manassas, Va./Osbourne Park) combined for 14 kills, while junior
Emily Hayes (Bartlett, Ill./Bartlett) added seven kills.
On the defensive side, first-team all-conference selection
Rachel Brummitt (Plano, Texas/Plano) did not disappoint with a match-best 25 digs. The rookies' effort brought her single-season total to 634, a new program mark, previously held by Rachel Newton (617/2005).
“I thought we played really well, High Point definitely challenged us,” stated Big South Coach of the Year
Marci Jenkins. “We battled tonight and I am very proud of my girls.”
The Highlanders held the Panthers (9-21) to a -.056 attack percentage and broke open an early jousting match with a 12-4 run, cruising to a 25-15 game-one win. After grabbing an 11-8 advantage, Radford reeled off five straight points on Brummitt's serve to take a commanding 16-8 lead.
A 5-1 start was all Radford needed as it never trailed on the way to a 25-23 game-two triumph. The Highlanders pushed their lead to as much as five (11-6) before a 6-1 run evened the match at 12-apiece. A Fleming kill would quickly put Radford back on top, 13-12. Another late surge by the Panthers evened the game at 22-22, but a service error and a block pushed the Highlanders' advantage back to two points (24-22). After a High Point found the floor, Fleming slammed one home to close out the game.
In the final set, Fleming ended a 7-4 spurt with a kill to give the Highlanders' an 11-7 lead. The Panthers threatened and made it a two-point game (20-18), but Radford scored the final five points as Hayes and Wiechecki charted their final kills of the match to secure the sweep.
The triumph secured Radford's first winning season since it went 24-7 in 2001.
