University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Radford
Volleyball Faces Radford in First Round of Big South Tournament
11.21.2024 | Women's Volleyball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville volleyball team is set to travel to High Point, N.C., to face Radford University in the first round of the Big South Conference Championship Tournament on Friday, Nov. 22, at 3 p.m.
GAME DETAILS
- (4) Radford vs. (5) UNC Asheville
- Friday, November 22, 2024
- 3 p.m.
- High Point, N.C. || Millis Athletic Center
- Watch
- Live Stats
REGULAR SEASON OVERVIEW
The Bulldogs finished the regular season 11-11 and 5-9 in Big South Conference play. After opening the season 0-2, the Bulldogs went on to win the following seven matches. The Bulldogs' 7-2 start to the season was the best start in program history since going 7-2 to start the 2009 season. Asheville also earned its first conference opener win since 2019, as the Bulldogs opened league play with a 3-1 victory over Radford. The Bulldogs' conference opener against Radford was Asheville's first match following Helene. Asheville did not play for 23 days as the team relocated and continued to train to resume its season amid Helene. Asheville's first match back in the Justice Center was on Nov. 1, 52 days after their last home contest. Asheville's homecoming match featured the Bulldogs defeating Charleston Southern in three sets. Asheville closed out its conference home opening weekend with a 3-1 win over Presbyterian on Nov. 2. The Bulldogs are looking to snap a five-match losing streak in their quarterfinal match on Friday.
The Bulldogs have been led this season by Kylie Cackovic, who earned a spot on the Big South All-Conference First Team. Cackovic is the first Bulldog to earn first-team honors since 2019. The redshirt sophomore from Raleigh, N.C., leads the team in kills with 288 (3.31 per set) and points at 324.5 (3.73 per set). She is second on the team with 26 service aces and 236 digs (2.71 per set). She had a career-high 24 kills, 24 points, four aces, and 18 digs in Asheville's match against Gardner-Webb on Nov. 8. In 22 games, she recorded a double-double in 11 matches.
Albertine van der Goot earned a spot on the Big South All-Academic team. The sophomore from Oosthem, Netherlands, is a chemistry major and has been a consistent presence on the court for the Bulldogs this season. She matched her career-high of 16 kills against Charlotte on Sept. 17 and had a career-high 19.5 points against Iona on Sept. 14. She leads the team with 68 total blocks and is second on the team with 221.5 points and 181 kills (2.13 per set).
Michelle Thao led the team's defense during the regular season with 426 digs (4.90 per set). She also led the team with 30 service aces. Payton Rolfsen has 589 assists, averaging 6.77 a set.
DOGS IN THE POSTSEASON
Asheville's trip to High Point marks the first time since 2019 that the Bulldogs will attend the Big South Conference Championship Tournament. The Bulldogs' last semifinal appearance was in 2018. Asheville is 3-3, winning the previous two matches against Radford in postseason play. The last time the two teams squared off in postseason play was in 2009.
A LOOK AT RADFORD
The Highlanders enter postseason play as the No. 4 seed after finishing 6-8 in league play. Sophie Paspal and Aubrey Hatch led the team during the regular season.
Paspal leads the Highlanders offense with 251 kills while hitting .394. She set a season-high for kills with 18 against Presbyterian and had 10 or more kills in 13 matches. Her 106 blocks also lead the team and rank ninth most in a single season in program history.
Hatch finished with 140 kills and 45 blocks. Her season-high 12 kills at Charleston Southern helped Radford clinch a postseason berth for the first time since 2018.
| STATISTICAL COMPARISON | ASHEVILLE | RADFORD |
| ATTACK | ||
| Kills | 1074 | 1192 |
| Errors | 439 | 517 |
| Attempts | 3197 | 3340 |
| Percent | .199 | .202 |
| Kills Per Set | 12.3 | 12.4 |
| SET | ||
| Assists | 967 | 1109 |
| Assists Per Set | 11.1 | 11.6 |
| Ball Handling Errors | 13 | 10 |
| SERVE | ||
| Aces | 142 | 148 |
| Errors | 244 | 180 |
| Aces Per Set | 1.6 | 1.5 |
| RECEPTIONS | ||
| Errors | 140 | 161 |
| Errors Per Set | 1.6 | 1.7 |
| DEFENSE | ||
| Digs | 1406 | 1444 |
| Digs Per Set | 16.2 | 15.0 |
| BLOCKING | ||
| Solo | 59 | 40 |
| Assists | 224 | 360 |
| Errors | 46 | 46 |
| Blocks | 171.0 | 220.0 |
| Blocks Per Set | 2.0 | 2.3 |
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