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Women's Volleyball Greg Hartlage, Director of Media Relations

Volleyball Travels to Asheville on Tuesday Night

Cullowhee, N.C. – Looking to close out nonconference play on a high note, Western Carolina volleyball opens a three-match week with a trip down the road to mountain rival UNC Asheville on Tuesday night at the on-campus Justice Center. First serve with the Bulldogs is slated for 6 p.m. and will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live stats for each match, linked below and at CatamountSports.com.

Matchday: Western Carolina (4-6) at UNC Asheville (9-2)
Date: Tuesday, Sept. 15
Time: 6 p.m.
Site: Justice Center (Asheville, N.C.)
Live Video: ESPN+ (paid subscription required)
Live Stats: Sidearm Stats
Twitter: @CatamountVB

From the Service Line:
The Catamounts return to the hardwood Tuesday, after a 1-2 weekend that saw WCU earn a four-set win over William & Mary on Saturday before dropping a three-set decision to UNF and a four-set loss to App State.

On the weekend, sophomore Tatum Sharp tallied a team-best 30 kills along with four aces and seven blocks. Senior Zoe Zudans added 24 kills, while freshman Aiyana Harris picked up 22. Senior Katie Boney led the way with 101 assists as sophomore Elise Gurley finished with 47 digs to pace WCU.

Over the last five matches, Zudans has totaled a team-best 54 kills, followed by 50 from Sharp, 41 from Harris and 39 from junior transfer Sophia Marini. Sharp has picked up 17 blocks in the last five matchups, as Gurley has tallied 93 digs.

Entering Tuesday's Midweek Tilt:
Individually, Boney leads the Southern Conference and ranks third nationally with 394 total assists, 83 more than anyone else in the conference. She is also third with an average of 9.16 assists per set. Zudans starts the midweek action tied for sixth in the league with 106 kills.  

Sharp paces the league with 45 total blocks, nine more than second place in the SoCon, and is fourth in rejections per set at 1.05. Boney checks into the weekend ninth with 28 stops, Gurley sits second in the league with 185 digs, one dig off the top spot in the conference. She is also seventh in the NCAA in digs through this point of the 2026 campaign. Her 4.3 digs-per-set average is also fourth in the SoCon.

The Catamounts also have a trio of players in the top 10 in aces: freshman Ashylyn Cobb and Boney are tied for fifth with 12, and junior Halley Tang is tied for 11th at 11 service aces.

As a team, WCU leads the SoCon in kills (487), is first in assists (451), first in blocks (66), second in blocks (76), first in digs (617), first in sets played (43) and service aces (65). WCU also tied for first in the nation in seasonal sets played with 43 sets thus far in 2026.

Catamount Career Record Watch:
Katie Boney climbed inside the top 10 in program history for career assists on Saturday night as she enters the new week with 2,285 helpers. She passed Cristina Nazario (2013-15), who had 2,221 in her career, in Saturday's win over the Tribe. Boney needs just 39 helpers to move into ninth in program history and pass Hannah Price (2017-20), who had 2,324 in her Purple & Gold career.

SCOUTING TUESDAY'S OPPONENT: UNC Asheville (9-2) – 2025 RPI 231
Longtime mountain rivals meet on Tuesday for the 57th time in the two programs' history as the Catamounts look for back-to-back wins in the rivalry for the second time since 2022. WCU has won three of the past four meetings, with the Bulldogs earning the win in 2024, the last time the two teams met in Asheville.

UNC Asheville (9-2) comes into the midweek tilt off back-to-back wins over UNCW and Norfolk State, which was preceded by a three-set defeat to Harvard on Friday. After falling in their opener to Boise State, the Bulldogs rattled off a seven-match win streak that included five 3-0 victories.  

Sophomore Addie Brookbank leads UNC Asheville with a team-best 119 kills, eclipsing double-figure kills six times and tallying a double-double against Boise State. Redshirt junior outside hitter Sarah Wadsworth has tallied 117 kills with five matches recording 10+ kills and a double-double against Elon.

Freshman setter Elise Jensen leads the Bulldogs with 225 helpers, followed closely by classmate Olivia Callipo, who's added 134 assists. UNC Asheville has over 100 service aces, with 117 this year, and Wadsworth leads the squad with 33. Sophomore defensive specialist/libero Izzy Perkins leads the team with 115 digs, including a season-best 22 against UNCW last time out. The Bulldogs have a trio of players with 29+ blocks thus far in 2026, led by redshirt senior middle blocker Lydia Pate with 33 rejections.

UNC Asheville is led by third-year head coach Danielle Marante, who tallied 73 wins at DII Tusculum before beginning her tenure with the Bulldogs in 2024. UNC Asheville was tabbed fifth in the eight-team Big South Preseason Poll,

What's Next for the Catamounts:
After Tuesday's midweek tilt, Western Carolina finishes nonconference play with a home-and-home against its fourth Big South opponent of the season, hosting USC Upstate on Thursday, Sept. 17, before traveling to Spartanburg the next night to end the pre-SoCon slate.

WCU has already faced Charleston Southern and Gardner-Webb ahead of Tuesday's match with UNC Asheville and Thursday's back-to-back.

Both matches will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), and live stats will be provided 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).
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Players Mentioned

Katie Boney

#18 Katie Boney

S
6' 0"
Senior
Elise Gurley

#6 Elise Gurley

L
5' 5"
Sophomore
Tatum Sharp

#12 Tatum Sharp

MB
6' 2"
Sophomore
Zoe Zudans

#22 Zoe Zudans

OH
6' 0"
Senior
Sophia Marini

#16 Sophia Marini

RS
6' 0"
Junior
Aiyana Harris

#7 Aiyana Harris

MB
6' 0"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Katie Boney

#18 Katie Boney

6' 0"
Senior
S
Elise Gurley

#6 Elise Gurley

5' 5"
Sophomore
L
Tatum Sharp

#12 Tatum Sharp

6' 2"
Sophomore
MB
Zoe Zudans

#22 Zoe Zudans

6' 0"
Senior
OH
Sophia Marini

#16 Sophia Marini

6' 0"
Junior
RS
Aiyana Harris

#7 Aiyana Harris

6' 0"
Freshman
MB