CHATTANOOGA --- Despite fighting to the very end against Samford on Friday night, Chattanooga volleyball capped off its regular season with a 3-0 loss to the Bulldogs in Maclellan Gymnasium.
The Mocs (18-13, 6-10 SoCon), who were celebrating their Senior Night at Maclellan Gym, threw everything they had at the Bulldogs (14-13, 9-6 SoCon) in front of a packed home crowd in Chattanooga. However, Samford was able to out-kill the Mocs 54-38 to ultimately secure the sweep victory on the night.
Samford was able to set the tone early by claiming a 25-19 win in the match's opening set. The Bulldogs then followed this up with an additional 25-21 win in set two, putting UTC down 2-0 heading into the third frame of the match.
Set three was a battle from the very first point to the very last, as both teams swapped leads throughout the entirety of the frame. The largest team that either team would hold during the third set would only be three points.
As the teams continued to fight back and forth, the score eventually reached 23-23, and it was do or die for the Mocs squad. After fending off a 24-23 Samford match point, Chattanooga had a pair of set points of their own that the team couldn't put away. Following a kill by Samford's Kaleigh Meritt, the Bulldogs were able to put the Mocs away with a service ace to seal a 28-26 win in set three, clinching the 3-0 victory for Samford.
Chattanooga's Gylian Finch provided the majority of UTC's offense on the night, accounting for 13 kills to finish the match with a double-double after recording 10 digs as well. Libero Paige Gallentine paced the Mocs with her team-high 14 digs on the night, while both Kate Neill and Chard'e Vanzandt finished with the team lead in blocks with three apiece.
UP NEXT
Tonight's match marked the final regular season match on UTC's 2023 schedule, as the Mocs will now turn their attention to the SoCon Tournament in Spartanburg, South Carolina. While the Mocs will still need to wait for Saturday's remaining conference matches to finish before they know they're final seeding and opponent in the quarterfinals, UTC was able to avoid hosting the #8 v #9 seed play-in match with UNCG on Monday, November 13, as eighth place ETSU fell to The Citadel earlier in the day on Friday to secure their seed for the tournament. Heading into tomorrow's final few SoCon matches, the Mocs will be waiting to learn whether they will be the conference's #6 or #7 seed, as the result of Western Carolina's match against UNCG will play into the matter. Regardless of what seed the Mocs end up with, they will be playing against one of the following teams: Mercer, Wofford or Samford.
50 SEASONS OF CHATTANOOGA VOLLEYBALL
The 2023 season for the Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team marks a major landmark for the program and the university, as UTC volleyball officially celebrates its 50th season of competition as a university sponsored athletic program. Following the adoption of the Title IX legislation back in 1972, UTC added women's basketball, tennis, and volleyball programs to its roster of athletic teams, bringing on five decades of history for each of the teams.
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