Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

HUNTINGDON, Pa. – The top-ranked Christopher Newport volleyball team split a pair of matches on the final day of the Juniata Asics Invitational as the Captains upended #9 Juniata, 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-17), after suffering their first loss of the season to #5 Wittenberg, 3-1 (25-19, 25-16, 19-25, 25-23) on Saturday.

Jessie Kolden led the way with an incredible 33 kills during the two contests, including 18 against Juniata. Bailey Jensen also had 15 kills and a team-high nine blocks during the day. For their efforts, both Captains earned a spot on the All-Tournament team.

In addition to the award-winners, Cory Harris had 17 kills and 23 digs. She also recorded her first double-double of the season in the opener on Saturday.

After falling to Wittenberg in a rematch of last year's NCAA Championship bout, Christopher Newport (7-1) rebounded in style with a strong showing against the host Eagles. The first set was closely contested as the two squads battled to a tie at 11-11. Kolden and Jensen were at the forefront of the attack, combining for five kills during the early going.

After that point, Kolden took control. During a spectacular performance, the sophomore standout fired seven kills in the latter half of the set, including four during a six-point stretch in the waning moments of the frame. Eventually, her efforts led to set point, which Jensen secured with a blistering ace to seal a 25-23 victory.

In the second set, the two teams continued to battle back-and-forth and fought to nine ties with the final one coming at 11-11. After that, a pair of Juniata errors gave CNU some breathing room before Chastity Lacy lined a pair of kills and Rachel Conway crushed an ace on the way to a commanding 19-12 lead.

Although the Eagles eventually chipped their deficit down to five, they could never pull any closer. Lacy and Christie Fellows tallied late kills before Kolden came through again with another rocket to clinch a 25-18 victory.

One set away from their seventh sweep of the season, the Captains dominated from the start. Harris roped a kill and ace, Jensen tallied a block and blast, and Kolden drove home a pair on the way to a 14-6 lead.

With a commanding advantage, Fellows sent back a pair of Eagle attacks and Kolden added three more shots to grab a 20-15 edge. Five points away, Fellows came through on the offensive end with a crushing kill before the squad took advantage of four Juniata missteps to seal the three-set victory with a 25-17 win in the final frame.

In addition to Kolden, who finished the match with 18 kills and a .382 hitting percentage, Harris looked strong with seven blasts and 10 digs, while Conway led the team with 17 assists. Overall, the Captains finished the match with a .306 hitting percentage and held Juniata to a .147 mark.

The victory over the Eagles showed impressive resolve for CNU after the squad suffered its first setback of the year to Wittenberg. During the championship rematch early on Saturday afternoon, the Captains and Tigers looked evenly matched and battled back-and-forth during the first set. Three kills by Harris and a pair by Fellows helped guide the team to a 9-9 deadlock. Unfortunately for Christopher Newport, Kara Seidenstricker found her rhythm and fired four kills to help break the tie and give Wittenberg a 17-13 advantage heading into a CNU timeout.

After the break, Harris launched a laser and Jensen chipped in with a block and kill, but their efforts were not enough to overcome the Tiger attack. Eventually, Seidenstricker posted two more kills and Andrea Behling drove home the winner to cap a 25-19 victory for Wittenberg.

The second set played much like the first as the two teams found themselves locked at 9 after Harris opened the frame with three more kills. Despite the early battle, the Tigers eventually separated themselves in the middle of the set. Guided by an ace from Jessica Batanian, two kills by Melissa Emming, and a few Captain miscues, Wittenberg pulled out to a six-point edge at 20-14.

Although Jensen momentarily broke the Tiger run with a kill, Wittenberg emphatically answered. Seidenstricker added three late kills, including the clincher, to secure a 25-16 win.

Having dropped the first two sets, CNU showed some tenacity in the third. After another 9-9 tie, Lacy tallied a block and kill to give the squad a modest 12-11 lead. Following a Tiger winner, Lacy fired a shot, Kolden roped two blasts, and Fellows added another kill during a sensational four-point run to grab a 16-12 advantage.

Later, Fellows added another block and blast to secure a 20-15 edge. With Wittenberg on the ropes, Harris, Jensen, and Kolden all landed blows off Alyssa Kidd assists to cruise to a 25-19 victory.

With some momentum on their side, the Captains jumped out early in the fourth. Guided by five kills from Kolden and a pair of blocks by Jensen and Kidd, CNU grabbed a 14-10 advantage. Still holding a four-point edge at 16-12, Christopher Newport could not quite keep Wittenberg at bay.

Behling collected a pair of kills and Katie Zito notched two straight aces as the Tigers battled back to grab a 19-18 lead. Although Jensen evened the score with a kill and Fellows added two more in the later moments of the set, Behling was too much for the Captains as the Wittenberg standout unloaded two more winners to take the final frame, 25-23.

Kolden posted a team-high 15 kills during the match, while Harris and Fellows added 10 apiece. Harris also had 13 digs for her first double-double of the season.

Kidd chipped in with 41 assists and 13 digs as well, while Jensen had six blocks. Abby Hogge also helped defensively, collecting 17 digs.

CNU will return to action next weekend when the squad heads to San Antonio for the Trinity National Invitational. The squad opens action on Friday with a pair of bouts against Trinity and Emory.

---CNU---