The Elon University volleyball team swept Davidson College Friday, Oct. 4 by a score of 3-0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-17),
The match, which was Elon’s fourth straight road game to start conference play, was all-Phoenix after the first set. A tight 20-19 contest quickly turned against the Wildcats in the first set and they struggled to keep up with Elon throughout the match. The Phoenix is now 2-2 in conference play.
An attack error by senior outside hitter Caroline Brown tied the game at 8 in the first set, then Elon jumped out to a 17-13 lead after a kill by senior setter Cali Estes. Davidson crawled back into the set, scoring three straight to trail just 20-19, which forced the Phoenix to take a timeout. Elon scored the next five points to win the set, capped off by a kill by sophomore outside hitter Megan Gravley.
Senior defensive specialist Maggie Reichard assisted on another Gravley score to give Elon an 8-3 lead in the second set. The Wildcats reduced the deficit to 14-10 after a block by Brown and senior middle blocker Tindall Sewell. A kill by junior right-side hitter Danielle Smith padded the Phoenix lead to 20-12 as Elon rolled to an easy set win.
In the third set, Elon got off to another strong start, leading 10-3 after a block by freshman middle blocker Ally Karle. Junior middle blocker Kris Harris scored to extend the lead to 16-8, and an attack error by Estes got the Wildcats within seven points, but Elon closed out the game with a kill by freshman outside hitter Kayla Agae.
Estes led Elon with 13 kills and added 20 assists and a service ace. Harris tallied 12 kills and three blocks. Sophomore setter Ana Nicksic had 26 assists and 12 digs in the match.
Brown scored 13.5 points for Davidson. Freshman setter Mikayla Derochie led all players with 28 assists and added two blocks. Junior defensive specialist Anastasia Owen had 15 digs.
Elon finishes its road trip Tuesday with a match at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, N.C. The match is set for 7 p.m.