CHATTANOOGA --- On their home court for the first time in 2017, the Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team used an energetic crowd and a prolific offensive attack to sweep Sam Houston State, 3-0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-18), on the opening day of the Chattanooga Classic in Maclellan Gym.
 
With the win, the Mocs improve to 3-2 on the season and carry a 1-0 mark in the Classic. The Bearkats fall to 0-4 overall and are 0-1 during tournament play.
 
"It was a great home opener and I'm so excited for our kids," said head coach Travis Filar. "To finally be at home and play that way at home, couldn't be more excited. The crowd was phenomenal, they brought energy from the start and I think that's because of the way we came out on the attack."
 
UTC out-hit SHSU in all three sets and finished the match with a .259 hitting percentage, in comparison to the Bearkats .131 mark. The Mocs totaled 40 kills to Sam Houston's 39 while also out-digging the opposition, 55-52, and out-blocking, 8.0-4.0.
 
"That's a great, very well-coached team. Sam Houston has been tremendous under Brenda [Gray] for a really long time. It was a really great start."
 
Ally Ford, the reigning SoCon Offensive Player of the Week, finished with 11 kills on a .250 hitting percentage while adding five digs and a block assist. Junior Miranda Elpers joined the attack by posting a double-double with ten kills and 12 digs, her third double-double of the season and number 13 of her career. Lauren Greenspoon directed the offense with 36 of the team's 39 assists, her fifth-straight match with 30+ assists.
 
Defensively, Megan Kaufman paced the Mocs with a match-high 19 digs while Emily Plumlee totaled 5.0 blocks and added six kills at a .462 clip. Dani Szczepanski posted 3.0 blocks and registered eight kills on a .389 percentage.
 
Chattanooga will conclude their own Classic tomorrow with a pair of matches, a 12:30 p.m. tilt against UL-Monroe and a 7 p.m. closer against Murray State. (Full Tournament Schedule)
 
"It's going to be a long day, against a really hungry ULM team and a very competitive and confident group in Murray State. They are two really good teams and we're excited to be back at home tomorrow," added Filar.
 
Chattanooga 3, Sam Houston State 0
1^st Set | UTC 25, SHSU 21
The Mocs and Bearkats traded the first ten points to open up the match before UTC extended out a 12-9 lead with the help of kills from Plumlee, Ford and Szczepanski, forcing SHSU to call their first timeout. Chattanooga would lead by as many as four, 19-15, before Sam Houston battled with a 5-2 run to pull within one at 21-20. Two kills from Ford, and a kill apiece from Plumlee and Elpers down the stretch clinched the first set for UTC, 25-21.
 
2^nd Set | UTC 25, SHSU 22
A back-and-forth set from the beginning, the second set featured ten ties and six different lead changes between the two squads. The Mocs biggest lead was four points, 14-10, before the Bearkats put together a 9-3 run to lead 19-17 and forcing Chattanooga to call a timeout. The timeout proved pivotal as the Mocs rallied for an 8-3 run out of the break and claimed the second set, 25-22, taking a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
3^rd Set | UTC 25, SHSU 18
With a second-straight sweep on their mind, Chattanooga raced out to a quick 8-5 lead with a pair of kills from Szczepanski and kills from both Elpers and Ford, making SHSU burn an early timeout. The lead would grow to as much as seven, 18-11, before SHSU slowly crept back in it at 20-16. UTC shook off the mid-set rust and closed on a 5-2 run, earning a 25-18 set win and a 3-0 sweep of the Bearkats.
 
Chattanooga Notes & Stats
- Miranda Elpers posted her third kill-dig double-double of the season … second-straight … 13^th of her career.
- Lauren Greenspoon dished out 36 assists … fifth-straight match with 30+ … now moves 5^th all-time in Chattanooga program history with 2,623 career assists … seven shy of moving into fourth (Deena Foster, 1991-94).
- Ally Ford notched double-digit kills for the fifth-straight match to start her playing career … team-high 74 kills on a .242 percentage this season.
- Megan Kaufman totaled 19 more digs tonight … now with 108 digs on the year … 6.75 digs per set average ranks atop the Southern Conference and 5^th in the NCAA (as of Sept. 1).
- Emily Plumlee posted 5.0 total blocks in the win … leads the team with 20.0 on the season and a 1.25 blocks per set average.