GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University women's volleyball team has claimed the final spot in the South Atlantic Conference tournament, which starts on Tuesday (Apr. 6). The Pioneers will square off against perennial powerhouse and No. 1 seed Wingate at 7 p.m in Curry Arena.
In the final standings, TU sat ninth, but a series of events led to the Pioneers entry into postseason. Lenoir-Rhyne finished in a tie for fifth, but had to forgo the tournament due to COVID-19 protocols. In Tusculum's lone home match of the season, the Pioneers defeated Lincoln Memorial. The two teams were tied for the final spot, but the sweep of the Railsplitters gave TU the berth.
RECAPPING THE WEEK
Tusculum (2-3, 2-3 SAC) returned to play for the last weekend of the regular season, falling to both Limestone and Queens.
So far this season, freshman Peyton Gash is averaging nearly three kills per set for the Pioneers, landing 43 swings on a .264 hitting percentage. Carli Pigza (30), Emiah Burrowes (27), and Gabby Gray (22) are the other three that have surpassed the 20-kill plateau. Elise Carmichael leads the Pioneers with 82 assists, followed by 47 from Catherine Clingan. The latter heads the service ace column, collecting eight, while Lydia Collins was next up with a trio.
Defensively, Carly Sosnowski is responsible for over four digs per set, recording 62 thus far. Burrowes and Gray have combined for 68 as the following two in the list. Pigza is the lone Pioneer to reach double-digit blocks this season, amassing 15 total (two solo, 13 assists).
LOOKING AHEAD
Wingate (8-1) has now won 14 of the last 15 SAC regular season titles and will seek its 12th tournament championship in the same span. Reese Blackley (85) and Sophie Schaff (84) are neck-and-neck in the kill column, with both hitting over .270 for the season. Shannon Kasprak is averaging 11.50 assists per set (4th nationally), totaling 299 through nine matches. Marianna Warren has landed 15 aces, nearly twice as many as the next Bulldog with eight. Courtney Niesen's 136 digs are on a 5.91 per set rate, good for 15th in DII. Schaff's 32 total blocks (four solo, 28 assists) are tops for Wingate. The Bulldogs are ranked within the top-20 across Division II in seven statistical categories: aces per set, assists per set, digs per set, hitting percentage, kills per set, win-loss percentage, and opponent hitting percentage.
Links to live stats and video for Tusculum University athletic events can be found through tusculumpioneers.com.
ATTENDANCE POLICIES
The South Atlantic Conference has outlined that the host institution's fan attendance policy will be enforced for all matches. Per Wingate's spring season attendance policy, neither visiting fans nor parents will be allowed at its venues.
