HICKORY, N.C. — The Catawba College women's volleyball team closed out the Lenoir-Rhyne Season Opening Invitational on Saturday afternoon, surrendering a 3-1 decision to Mount Olive at Shuford Arena.

TEAM STATS
- The Catawba Indians (1-2) recorded a .179 hitting percentage, a better mark than every loss in 2024, while Mount Olive (1-2) was slightly less efficient with a .172 clip
- The squads were even in blocking with eight stops apiece, but the Trojans had three block errors compared to Catawba's two
- UMO was mostly all-or-nothing in service as the servers from Pickle Town had 12 aces and nine errors; the blue and white posted four aces and a strong .977 success rate
- Outside of serve receive, Catawba minimized its miscues with 29 slip-ups against the Trojans' 43, three of which were ball-handling errors

INDIVIDUAL STATS
- Sofia Beard enjoyed a solid all-around performance, leading the way with 12 kills, eight digs and four blocks (two solo)
- Martina Foster delivered nine kills and elevated for four assisted blocks on the defensive end
- Annica Kagle had a career-best day on offense as the Sewickley, Pa., product pummeled seven kills on a .357 hitting percentage
- At the setter slot, Haley Moffett and Tamie Boudot each dished out 17 dimes and combined for 10 digs
- Riley Hill tallied team highs of 12 digs and two service aces in addition to handing out four assists

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
- The Trojans stumbled out of the gate, giving Catawba the first three points via miscues before suffering an ace dealt by Lillie Kate Rogers
- Despite big kills from Beard and Kagle, Catawba saw its lead gradually fade as a four-point slide into the lead triggered a timeout from the blue and white
- Rogers snipped the skid as Foster and Sára Puskás followed with an assisted stop to keep the Catawba Indians within striking distance
- After holding a narrow 21-19 edge, the Trojans went 4-1 on the last five rallies to sprint through the finish line in a 25-20 opening set

Second Set
- A neck-and-neck start to set No. 2 featured Maddie Dayton's first career kill and two splashes from Beard
- Tied at 8-8, Catawba found a seam and imposed its will with an 11-2 run that Foster contributed two kills and a block toward
- The Catawba Indians wasted little time wrapping up the frame, getting two more slams from Beard and a set-ending block from Foster and Rogers in a 25-14 rout

Third Set
- Back-to-back Trojan setbacks helped Catawba open the stanza ahead 2-0, but three UMO kills and a trio of aces by Caroline Sheaffer flipped the script
- The blue and white played a reverse card of their own with a 7-1 surge including six points generated by Catawba kills
- Control of the set, featuring 10 tied scores and seven lead changes, traded hands rapidly with three points being the largest advantage down the stretch
- With Catawba two points away from going ahead 2-1, UMO prevailed in the last three rallies via kill, ace and block to bag the third frame

Fourth Set
- The Trojans hurried to a 10-5 advantage that started with an Olivia Melvin kill, then a second Melvin strike preceded a Catawba timeout
- Errors buffeted UMO, letting the Catawba Indians pull within one at 12-11 before the Trojans regrouped and jetted out to an 18-11 lead
- Kagle punished the Trojans with three kills and Hill landed an ace, playing an impressive game of catch-up and shrinking the deficit to 21-19
- UMO received two Danielle Parker kills and a pair of solo blocks, making a swift end to the set and match

UP NEXT
Catawba debuts on home court next Tuesday, Sept. 9, welcoming Winston-Salem State to Goodman Arena at 7 p.m.