Christopher Newport University

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- With two more wins on the road Saturday, the Christopher Newport volleyball team has piled up victories in eight of the last nine matches including five in a row. The Captains (10-4) took down Lebanon Valley College, 3-0 (25-17, 25-13, 25-17), and then Catholic University, 3-1 (24-26, 25-11, 25-13, 25-19) for the two wins on Saturday. 

The CNU defense was on full display as they held Lebanon Valley to .063 hitting while forcing the host Cardinals to a -.016 hitting percentage over four sets. It is the third time this season that the CNU defense has held their opponent to a negative hitting percentage. 

In the first match, the Captains were led by Lauren Hobbs with a double-double, notching 12 assists and adding 12 digs. Alli Pratt and Emmy Carpenedo had a team-high eight kills while rookie Jasmine Williams added seven. 

It was Williams and Carpenedo at the head of the attack in the second match as Carpenedo had 11 kills and Williams poured in 10. Carley Coghill continued her hot streak with nine kills on 20 swings against Catholic. 

At the start of the day, the Captains fell behind Lebanon Valley by three, 14-11, before flipping the scoreboard with seven straight points and nine of ten to take a 20-15 advantage. Hobbs was at the service line for the big run which included two kills by Avery Hanly and Williams added one. The run triggered a dominant finish to the first set as CNU only surrendered three points on their own errors while outscoring the Flying Dutchmen 14-3 to close out the set. 

The momentum carried into the second set where CNU blitzed out to a 16-5 advantage. Hanly and Phoebe Adams did the bulk of the work at the line while Carpenedo led the way with three kills. CNU cruised to the second-set win, 25-13, and finished out the win over Lebanon Valley with a 25-17 win in the third set. 

Against the host Cardinals, the Captains gave up a thrilling back-and-forth first set that extended to extra points. Catholic edged out the Captains, 26-24, but CNU quickly rallied to pull away in each of the next three sets. 

In the second set, Maddie Hanes led an initial burst that saw the visitors open up an 8-2 lead. Things kept breaking for the Captains and by the time Hanes rotated back to the service line she was able to build the lead to a 20-9 advantage. Madison Rogers blasted a winner and Carpenedo followed with an ace before Rogers closed out the win, 25-11, with a solo block. 

CNU raced out to another big lead in the third, pulling ahead 16-3 and rolling to a 25-13 win. The clinching set was much closer with the two teams locked within three points of eachother until it was 19-all. From there, it was all Captains with six straight points with Hanly on serve to win the match. Coghill had back-to-back kills to set up match point and Carpenedo capped her strong day overall with a clinching block. 

The Captains will stay on the road for their next matchup and will look to extend the team's win streak at Randolph-Macon College on Tuesday, September 29 at 7:00 p.m.