North Carolina
Ball State
Carolina Clips Cardinals 3-1
September 17, 2010 | Volleyball
Sept. 17, 2010
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Four North Carolina players recorded double-digit kill efforts to drive the Tar Heels to a 3-1 (25-20, 25-27, 25-16, 25-21) victory over Ball State Friday night in the Tar Heel Classic at Carmichael Auditorium. Carolina wins their third straight match and improves to 7-4 in 2010.
Courtney Johnston and Kayla Berringer registered 12 kills apiece to lead the UNC offensive attack, which was fueled by 37 assists from Cora Harms. Christine Vaughen and Suzanne Haydel also had strong games attacking, chipping in 11 and 10 kills, respectively. Berringer's 12 kills are a rookie season-high.
On the defensive side, Carolina notched a season-high 87 digs while also matching a season-high with 12 blocks. Kaylie Gibson led the squad with season-high 26 digs while Cayla Shortley and Harms logged 15 and 14, respectively. The Tar Heels limited a powerful Ball State attack to just a .006 hitting percentage.
"I thought our defensive effort was key tonight," said head coach Joe Sagula. "We blocked well and can hopefully carry this momentum into the rest of the weekend."
Carolina held Ball State to a -.026 hitting percentage to claim the first frame 25-20. Harms totaled 11 assists to service a Tar Heel attack that logged 16 kills. Berringer mashed six kills while Johnston and Vaughen chipped in three apiece. The Tar Heels used an 11-4 run at the end of the set to push in front of the Cardinals 24-17 and earn a 1-0 lead in the match.
all State lead by as many as six early, opening the second frame with a 13-8 advantage. Carolina crawled back to finally take the lead at 24-23 behind a flurry of Berringer and Haydel kills. The comeback bid fell short as Ball State reeled off three straight points to win the second frame 27-25. Carolina was plagued by nine errors and amassed 20 attack errors in the first two sets.
The Tar Heels handled Ball State in the third frame winning 25-16. Carolina uncorked a 10-2 lead and never looked back to gain a 2-1 advantage in the match. Bleke and Johnston combined for eight kills to just one error to lead the UNC attack. The Tar Heels held the Cardinals to another negative hitting percentage (-.026) in the third frame behind 19 digs and three team blocks.
The Tar Heels used a 10-1 run in the middle of the fourth frame to take a commanding 18-11 lead. Ball State battled back to slice the Carolina lead to two at 21-19, but UNC proved too much winning the frame 25-21 and match 3-1.
Carolina will be back in action Saturday hosting Appalachian State at 1 p.m. and Temple at 7:30 p.m. from Carmichael Arena.
