ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The Western Carolina volleyball team looks to continue its solid start to the 2022 season on Tuesday night as the Catamounts head to mountain
rival UNC Asheville for a 6 p.m. contest inside the Justice Center.
The match will be streamed on ESPN+
(paid subscription required) with live stats available on CatamountSports.com.
WCU is 2-1 following the season's opening weekend at the Wake Forest Invitational. The Catamounts rebounded from a season-opening 3-1 setback started to Kennesaw State on Friday to battle to a 3-2 victory over the host Demon Deacons and a 3-0 sweep of NC Central.
Fifth-year senior
Merry Gebel and junior
Eden Punch earned the Southern Conference Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week awards which were announced on Monday. Gebel, who was selected to the Wake Forest Invitational All-Tournament team, led WCU with 37 kills in three matches including a team-best 17 in the 3-2 victory over the Demon Deacons. Punch totaled 11 blocks over the weekend including a career-best eight against Wake Forest. She registered seven block assists against the Deacs.
UNC Asheville is 1-2 with a win over Stonehill (Mass.) and losses to North Alabama and Queens after hosting the UNC Asheville Invitational last weekend. The Bulldogs were picked in a tie for seventh in the nine-team Big South Conference preseason poll.
Tuesday's match is the 53
rd all-time meeting between the schools with WCU leading the series 27-25. UNC Asheville scored a 3-1 win in 2021 on a neutral court in the Wildcat Invitational hosted by Davidson.
The Catamounts head to Cookeville, Tenn. this weekend for the Golden Eagle Invitational hosted by Tennessee Tech and will also face Evansville on Friday and Northwestern on Saturday.
Keep track of everything related to Catamount volleyball and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports), Instagram (@wcu_catamounts, @catamountvb), and Twitter (@catamounts, @catamountvb).
