HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Behind dominant efforts all over the court, the Christopher Newport volleyball team toppled two nationally-ranked opponents in a pair of five-set thrillers on the final day of the Juniata / ASICS Invitational as the Captains upended No. 24 Carnegie Mellon, 3-2 (25-17, 15-25, 27-25, 21-25, 15-13), before outlasting No. 3 Wittenberg, 3-2 (25-23, 22-25, 25-20, 18-25, 15-13), on Saturday at Memorial Gymnasium.
The victory over Wittenberg marked the 500th career win for head coach
Lindsay Birch. Compiling a 500-119 record since taking over the program in 2002, Birch boasts an .808 winning percentage, which ranks as the 17th highest in the history of collegiate volleyball among coaches with at least 500 victories. With the triumphs over Carnegie Mellon and Wittenberg, she now has wins against 116 different programs during her decorated coaching career.
Along with serving as Birch's milestone victory, the win over the No. 3 Tigers marked the highest-ranked opponent defeated by the Captains since CNU upended No. 3 Emory in the 2011 NCAA Regional Championship.
With the two victories, Christopher Newport now stands at 5-2 on the season. The setbacks drop Carnegie Mellon to 2-4 and Wittenberg to 5-1.
In addition to Birch's historic victory, a pair of freshmen also added their names to the record books on Saturday. In the opener against Carnegie Mellon,
Lauren Tracy dished out 47 assists. That total marked the fifth-highest by a freshman in program history and the highest since All-American Brittany Collins handed out 53 helpers against Elizabethtown on October 2, 2004. In the nightcap, fellow first-year standout
Mackenzie Wright registered nine blocks against Wittenberg. That also marked the fifth-highest single-match total by a freshman in CNU history and the highest since Amy Johnson sent back 10 attempts against Southwestern on October 13, 2001.
Kicking things off on Saturday, the Captains capitalized on a well-balanced attack to stun Carnegie Mellon. Leading the way,
Katie Piper pumped 16 kills while hitting at a .371 clip. She also pocketed 11 digs for her first double-double of the year after notching nine during her sophomore campaign. Stuffing the stat sheet across the board, the junior also laced a team-high four aces against the Tartans.
Equally effective alongside Piper,
Megan O'Hara added 12 kills, while
Abby Oren and
Riley Garrison chipped in with nine apiece. Setting the tone on the defensive side, Oren had a hand in six blocks during the match, while Wright posted five, including three solo stops. Overall, Christopher Newport had 13 rejections during the contest. Additionally, on the back row,
Josie Lucernoni picked up 10 digs, and Tracy matched that total. Coupled with her 47 assists, the freshman setter eventually finished with her first collegiate double-double. Her second would come hours later.
In the nightcap against the Tigers, Tracy finished with 41 assists and 17 digs to cap off a tremendous day by the first-year star. Taking advantage of Tracy's efforts, Piper unleashed 21 blasts against Wittenberg, marking her third career 20-kill outing. She also added 14 digs for her second double-double of the day as well.
Staying busy, Piper eventually finished the contest with 69 attack attempts, which marked the ninth-highest total in CNU history and the third-most since the NCAA switched to 25-point sets.
Just as potent on the offensive side, Garrison laced 11 kills on just 26 swings, while O'Hara balanced out the top performers with eight blasts. On the other side, Christopher Newport tormented Wittenberg along the net. The Captains notched 13 total blocks, including Wright's nine rejections. Garrison also played a role in four stops, while Piper, O'Hara, and Tracy assisted on three apiece.
On the back row, Lucernoni came through with 22 digs, while
Allie Plumlee tallied 14. On serve-receive,
Katie Crofford was a perfect 15-for-15 against Wittenberg, while Lucernoni converted 29 of her 30 attempts. Plumlee was 19-for-20 as well.
Christopher Newport will return to action on September 14 with a twin bill against Johnson & Wales and Colorado College on the first day of the Pikes Peak Challenge.
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