CCU Volleyball closed out the 2015 Eckerd Classic Saturday, wrapping play with a pair of heavy-handed wins to advance to 4-4 on the season. The Cougars lost the first set of the day but didn't falter again, beating Seton Hill University in four before storming past UNC Pembroke in a fast three-set affair.
 
"Today was a great day for CCU Volleyball," remarked an enthusiastic coach Andria Harshman at the end of the day. "The girls worked extremely hard and played with such a purpose. Two wins today against two great teams was a huge confidence boost."
 
Unfazed by the early morning set-back, Christian answered SHU's first-set win with an efficient and clean attack. Though they'd committed ten hitting errors in the opener, they would misfire just nine times in the next two sets combined. CCU's 55-kill effort overpowered the Griffins, who totaled just 43 kills on the match and hit a lowly -.043 in the final frame.
 
"We have a powerful, quick, and spread offense," added kill leader Taylor Sturms. Sturms set the mark for all of the game's hitters, totaling 17 and hitting .277. "We are running different combinations that get a lot of one on one blocks, and have all five hitters contributing to the system."
 
From the middle, Sophia Proano once again proved Christian's most lethal hitter, notching a blazing .360 kill percentage with a 13-kill, 25-attempt effort. Setters Jordan Carswell and Kylee Wurster had their hand in the Cougar effort at the net, combining for 44 assists in the win.
 
Carswell led the CCU offense in the win over UNC Pembroke, recording a season-high 34 assists and helping the Cougars to a team .327 attack percentage – their best of the year. Sturms and Proano paced Christian's attack once again, tallying a combined 25 kills.
 
Defensively, sophomore libero Joelle LeFevre was the player to watch. The Fruita, CO native totaled 40 digs on the day. In a head-turning defensive effort at the net, freshman middle Hope Baldrica recorded eight blocks – six of them coming in the morning's win over SHU.
 
"We are continuing to grow as a team and also as a program," Sturms concluded. "In both games we had a slow start and got down early but we battled our way back. We stayed united as a team and worked on slowing the game down in between plays. We had a number of girls step up and take on new roles, and we're constantly learning and looking for ways to improve our play."
 
Two more matches remain on CCU's Florida schedule – they'll play Webber International and Flagler College before returning to Lakewood for Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play.