CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Making the most of their 2023 home opener, the Western Carolina volleyball team defeated mountain-rival UNC Asheville in straight sets on Tuesday night at Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center. The Catamounts won by the scores of 25-13, 25-21, 25-18.
The Catamounts climb to 2-5 on the season as UNC Asheville dropped its third-straight to fall to 3-4.
Sophomore Ali Morris paced the WCU offense for the fifth time in 2023 with 13 kills, hitting .478 for the Catamounts. Morris also tallied eight digs and three blocks. Junior Sarah Janourova finished with 20 assists and seven digs while Katie Boney totaled 12 assists and a pair of aces. Freshman Eda Yalçinkaya posted a career-high with 16 digs on the defensive end for the Catamounts.
For Western Carolina, true freshmen Annsley Flack and Zoe Zudans appeared in their first collegiate action on Tuesday in the winning effort.
Kylie Cackovic led the Bulldogs with eight kills as she also tallied eight digs and a pair of blocks. Ona Elkins led Asheville with 13 assists and five digs. Michelle Thao had a team-high nine digs while also recording two blocks and a pair of aces.
The Catamounts took command quickly on Tuesday night with a 6-1 burst right out of the gates to seize control against Asheville. The Bulldogs posted the next three points before an 8-2 run gave the hosts a 15-6 lead at the media timeout. WCU had answers for every point from UNC Asheville as the Catamounts stretched it to 21-10. The Catamounts were able to claim set one by the score of 25-13 with a blistering .429 hitting percentage.
Similar to the opening set, WCU raced out to a 7-2 edge quickly over the visiting Bulldogs in the second set. Asheville and Western Carolina traded a pair of points before six of the next seven came from the Catamounts to make it 15-5 at the media break. The two teams traded matching three-point runs before the Bulldogs went on an 8-2 run forcing Western Carolina to call a timeout. Asheville scored three of the next four points to make it 21-19 Catamounts as WCU used its second timeout. However, WCU claimed the second set by scoring four of the final six points to gain a 2-0 lead in the match.
All told in the second set, UNC Asheville rallied from an 18-8 deficit by scoring 14 of the next 18 points to tie the match at 21 before the Catamounts stemmed the tide and pulled away for the set winner.
The third set started with four early ties before four straight points from WCU gave the hosts a 10-6 lead. The two teams traded the next nine points before the Catamounts claimed a 15-10 lead at the media break. Western Carolina scored the next three points out of the break which forced the Bulldogs to spend a timeout. Asheville went on a 7-3 run following the timeout before the hosts scored four of the final five points to claim the sweep over their mountain-rivals.
The Catamounts return to the road on Friday in tournament action at the Phoenix Volley for Unity hosted by Elon. Western Carolina battles the host Phoenix on Friday, September 8, at 6 p.m. before squaring off with N.C. Central on the next afternoon at 4 p.m. Both matches will be shown on FloSports (paid subscription required).
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