University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
9-17,6-7Big South
Gardner-Webb
12-18,3-10Big South
Bulldogs Sweep Gardner-Webb in Home Finale
11.08.2025 | Women's Volleyball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - The UNC Asheville volleyball team swept Gardner-Webb (25-22, 25-23, 25-18) on Saturday (Nov. 8) in the Bulldogs' final home match of the season.
The Bulldogs (9-17, 6-7 Big South) hit .203 as a team and recorded 46 kills while dominating at the net, totaling eight team blocks while holding the Runnin' Bulldogs (12-18, 3-10 Big South) to a .089 hitting percentage. Albertine van der Goot and Ana Djurovic led the Bulldogs' offense with nine kills each and a cumulative 22.5 points between them. They were followed by Kylie Cackovic with eight kills and seven digs and Kimberly Williams with eight kills and a .636 attack percentage.
Djurovic also worked Asheville's back row, totaling 14 digs alongside Michelle Thao, who anchored Asheville's defense with 15 digs, eight of which were earned during the third set. Also contributing to the Bulldogs on defense was Baylor Herlehy, who recorded five total blocks, and van der Goot with one solo block and three block assists. The duo of Selina Koc and Payton Rolfsen recorded 20 and 18 assists, respectively. Koc recorded nine digs and Rolfsen finished with eight.
Asheville started the match with a kill from Djurovic, and Gardner-Webb responded with two kills, and both teams wrestled for scoreboard dominance. With the match locked at 14-14, the Bulldogs made a 6-2 surge consisting of kills from van der Goot, Djurovic, and Kylie Cackovic before the Runnin' Bulldogs retaliated with kills of their own to trail the Bulldogs by one (20-19). Kills from Herlehy and Kimberly Williams tilted the momentum back in Asheville's favor, and the Bulldogs were able to hold the lead for the remainder of the opening frame, using a kill from Djurovic to earn a 25-22 first-set win.
The Bulldogs carried the momentum into the second set, but Gardner-Webb didn't back down easily as there were 13 ties and four lead changes in the second frame. The Bulldogs capitalized on early attack errors from the Runnin' Bulldogs before Gardner-Webb regained control to pull ahead 6-3. Three kills from van der Goot tied the score 9-9. Gardner-Webb went on to extend its lead out by four (18-14) before powerful attacks from Cackovic and Herlehy tied the score once again at 20-20. Both teams went back-and-forth and found themselves locked at 23 before a kill from Williams and a block from This sparked a push from both teams, who were tied at 23-23, until a final kill from Williams and van der Goot helped the Bulldogs to a 25-23 second set win.
Tied at 11 in the final frame, a kill from Williams sparked a 5-0 run for Asheville. Gardner-Webb brought Asheville's lead back down to one (18-17) before a kill from Avery Loeback sparked a 4-0 run that put Asheville ahead 22-17. A kill from Djurovic and an ace from Avery Schwieger helped Asheville secure the Saturday sweep.
UP NEXT
Asheville will close out the regular season on Friday, Nov. 14, as the Bulldogs travel to Spartanburg to face USC Upstate at 6 p.m.
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