CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - In the home opener with 243 fans in attendance, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga volleyball team fell to Austin Peay, 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-15). The Lady Mocs were lead by junior setter Bailee Chastain (Signal Mountain, Tenn.) who recorded 16 assists and 12 digs for her first double-double of the season and tenth career.
Freshman libero Paula Passmore (Merritt Island, Fla) used her defensive prowess to dig up 34 balls on the night topping her career-high by one set in the first match of the season against East Tennessee State.
Offensively, junior middle blocker Courtney Barnes (Franklin, Tenn.) paced Chattanooga with nine kills and recorded two of the team's four total blocks. Freshman outside hitter Megan Earnd (Munster, Ind.) played for the second time this season recording career highs with 4 kills and 6 digs.
For the first 33 points of the opening set, the Lady Mocs and Lady Govs traded points thru long rallies, but Austin Peay ended up taking control of the set 25-18. Neither team hit the ball effectively as both teams looked to rebound.
In the second set, the Lady Mocs played their best of the night posting a .349 attacking percentage with 17 kills and only two errors. The squad's effort wasn't enough as the Lady Govs took a commanding 2-0 lead by taking the set 25-23.
Unable to take advantage of a good effort, Chattanooga could not rebound dropping the third set 25-15. The Lady Mocs committed eight errors in the set allowing Austin Peay to cruise to victory.
Stephanie Champine, Kirsten Distler and Ilyanna Hernandez all posted double-doubles showing the versatility of the Lady Govs. For the match, Austin Peay posted 13 more kills than the Lady Mocs hitting at a .176 mark.
The Lady Mocs continue play in the Country Inn & Suites Volleyball Challenge tomorrow at noon against SIU-Edwardsville and then battle Loyola (Ill.) to conclude the tournament at 5 p.m. Then, Chattanooga heads to Tennessee State on Tuesday for a match scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
Austin Peay def. Chattanooga 25-18,25-23,25-15
Austin Peay (5-4) (Kills-aces-blocks) - CHAMPINE, Stephanie 16-1-1;
HERNANDEZ, Ilyanna 11-0-1; SKINNER, Taylor 7-1-2; GRANTHAM, Kayla
4-0-1; DISTLER, Kirstin 3-1-2; ALISALEH, Sarah 2-3-1; SAIN, Alex
1-0-1; MOLLMAN, Jessica 0-0-1; Totals 44-6-5.5. (Assists) - ALISALEH,
Sarah 26. (Dig leaders) - HERNANDEZ, Ilyanna 16; CHAMPINE, Stephanie
15; DISTLER, Kirstin 15; ECONOMOS, Paige 12; ALISALEH, Sarah 9
Chattanooga (3-2) (Kills-aces-blocks) - BARNES, Courtney 9-0-2;
BEASLEY, Kirsten 6-0-0; HARVILLE, Stephanie 4-0-1; ERND, Meagan 4-0-0;
KUHN, Ellie 3-0-1; PARMAN, Heather 3-0-0; CONNER, Cassie 1-0-0; SCOTT,
Jessica 1-0-1; CHASTAIN, Bailee 0-0-1; Totals 31-0-4.0. (Assists) -
CHASTAIN, Bailee 16. (Dig leaders) - PASSMORE, Paula 33; CHASTAIN,
Bailee 12; PARMAN, Heather 9
Site: Chattanooga, Tenn. (Maclellan Gym)
Date: Sep 11, 2009 Attend: 243 Time: 1:20
Referees: Thomas Laguer, Denise Penzkofer
Country Inn & Suites Volleyball Challenge
