Cullowhee, N.C. – Senior Zoe Zudans and freshman Ashlyn Cobb paced a balanced offensive attack as Western Carolina volleyball earned a four-set victory over Samford in the front end of back-to-back matches against the Bulldogs inside Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center. WCU won 25-18, 25-15, 20-25, 25-15 to open a home-heavy October.
Zudans led the Catamounts with her third straight double-figure kill effort – and her 11th of the season – with a match-high 14 kills. Cobb secured her fifth double-double of the year with 13 kills and 13 digs, while also tallying a career-best four blocks. Sophomore Samantha Kranzler added eight kills to the offensive attack and paced WCU defensively, tying her season-best with 17 digs. She also matched her career-high with four assists.
Senior Katie Boney posted a loaded stat sheet Thursday, leading all players with 38 assists and tallying 14 digs for her team-high seventh double-double of the year. Boney also recorded a career-high with eight kills and picked up three blocks and two service aces.
Behind Kranzler, sophomore Elise Gurley had 15 digs to accompany the 14 from Boney. Cobb rounded out the quartet in double figures with 13 digs. Freshman JoJo Abeyta led the Catamounts defensively on the block after entering in the third set, before totaling a career-best five blocks, followed by four from Cobb and three apiece from Boney and Sharp.
Ally Cordes led Samford with a double-double of 10 kills and 14 digs, adding three blocks. Hazel Slusher chipped in eight kills and five blocks for the guests. Maggie Kalisz finished with seven kills and Janie Stinchomb totaled six for Samford. Alison Ohlinger led the Bulldogs with a double-double, handing out 33 assists with 13 digs. Brooklyn Drumwright had a match-high 21 digs, followed by 16 from Brianna Hamilton. Slusher paced the Bulldog block with five stops followed by three apiece from Cordes and Kalisz.
After a back-and-forth start over the first eight points, the Catamounts used a 12-4 run to take a 16-8 lead in the opening set. After a quick 6-2 burst from the Bulldogs, the lead dropped to four before a late 7-4 run let the Catamounts take a commanding 25-18 opening-set victory. WCU hit a match-best .325 in the first set.
Western Carolina rode its strong start with spurts of 8-4 and 6-1 over the first half of the second set to take an early 14-6 lead over the Bulldogs. Samford pulled to within six points on multiple occasions as the set went back-and-forth before a late 6-2 burst from the Purple & Gold made it a 2-0 match lead with a 25-15 set two triumph.
The tightest frame of the night saw six early ties as neither team could gain traction before the Bulldogs rattled off an 8-2 run to take a 14-8 lead midway through the third set. The two sides traded runs over the next 12 points, with Samford taking a 21-13 lead before WCU battled back with a 7-3 spurt. However, the visitors forced a fourth set late at 25-20.
Cobb and Kranzler helped propel a 6-2 spurt early in the fourth set to stake the Catamounts to a 9-5 advantage. After a quick answer from the Bulldogs that trimmed the deficit to two, the Catamounts created their final separation on Thursday with a decisive 13-3 run and withstood a four-point burst late from the guests to claim the match in four.
Western Carolina (5-11, 1-2 SoCon) returns to the hardwood on Friday, Oct. 2 for the back end of the back-to-back conference meetings against Samford. The rematch with the Bulldogs is slated for a 6 p.m. start and will be a PURPLE OUT, as Catamount fans are encouraged to Wear Purple. Friday's match will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), and live stats will be available for the matchup via a link at CatamountSports.com.
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 X (@catamounts, @catamountvb).
