Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
UNC-Charlotte (Duke Invitational)
Volleyball Defeats Charlotte 3-2 For First 2003 Win
09/06/2003 | 12:00:00 | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 6, 2003
By Lou Antoine
SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Freshmen Ashley Saverine and Holly Marita each posted double-doubles to lead the Salukis to a 3-2 come-from-behind victory (30-21, 24-30, 27-30, 30-21, 15-13) over North Carolina-Charlotte on Saturday at the Duke Classic. Saverine's double-double included a career-high 23 kills plus 14 digs while Marita had a career-high 54 assists and 17 digs as SIU overcome a 2-1 deficit and won it's first game of the season.
"This one was big because we were down 2-1 and came back. That win shows that we do have some character and we know how to fight and win big points. It would have been difficult to handle if we battled back from a 2-1 deficit and lost the match so I'm glad we won. We need to keep getting better if we plan to win more matches," said SIU Head Coach Sonya Locke.
Down two games to one, the Salukis broke a 9-9 tie in game four with seven straight points while Marita was serving, including three aces to take a 16-9 lead. After a Charlotte point, SIU scored five straight points while Kelly Harman was serving to give the Salukis a 21-10 lead and control of the game, which SIU won by nine (30-21). In game five with the score tied at 13-13, Saverine and Haley Hann kills gave SIU its first win of the season.
"I'm glad Ashley now knows what it's going to take to be successful at this level and hopefully she'll continue to play that way. We know what they're capable of and it's a matter of them displaying that ability all the time. I've always told them that defense was what would win matches for us and we had to dig in and play defense and that's what we did today," added Locke.
The Salukis had more blocks (9 to 6), more digs (78 to 72) and outhit (.223 to .180) the 49ers. Defensively Erica Miller had 17 digs and Harman added 12. Saverine hit .354 (23 kills, 6 errors, 48 attempts), Hann added 13 kills and six digs with a .303 hitting percentage (13 kills, 3 errors, 33 attempts) and Marita added four kills, four aces and a team-best .364 hitting percentage (4 kills, no errors, 11 attempts).
The Salukis face host Duke in the final match of the Duke Classic at 6:30 p.m. Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.
