#24 Tartans Remain Unbeaten with Two More Wins at Marcia French Invitational

(CLEVELAND, Ohio) - The 24th-ranked Carnegie Mellon University volleyball team remained unbeaten for the season when it topped North Carolina Wesleyan College and Hiram College on the second day of the Marcia French Invitational hosted by Case Western Reserve University. Senior Heather Holton (Haslett, Mich.) was named to the All-Tournament team following a weekend in which she tallied 27 kills.

The Tartans opened Saturday with a 3-0 victory against North Carolina Wesleyan, winning the sets by scores of 25-14, 25-15, and 25-14. The team recorded 40 kills for the match with sophomore Sahara Aqui (Miramar, Fla./Archbishop McCarthy) leading the charge with 10. Holton tallied seven kills on 16 attempts with no errors for a hitting percentage of .438 for the match.

Sophomore Maia So-Holloway (Oakland, Calif./Sacred Heart Cathedral) picked up 27 assists while sophomore Kayla Yew (San Francisco, Calif./Sacred Heart Cathedral) led the defense with 17 digs. Holton and senior Lizzy Thrasher (Rochester, N.Y./Gates Chili) each had two block assists in the win.

Against Hiram, the Tartans dropped the first set, 25-23, before winning the 25-22, 25-21, and 25-15 for their eighth win of the year. Fifty-one kills were put down by the Tartans, including 18 in the fourth set when the Tartans hit .349.

Junior Lauren Mueller (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown STEM Academy) led three players in double-digit kills with 15 with Holton and senior Eliza Donohue (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield) putting down 10 apiece. So-Holloway and Thiele split action at the setter position and dished out 23 and 21 assists, respectively. Yew collected 29 digs while So-Holloway and freshman Diana Balta (Media, Pa./Penncrest) had 15 digs with senior Hannah Wooten (Hughson, Calif.) digging up 14 Hiram attack attempts.

The Tartans recorded five block solos and 14 block assists with Donohue leading the charge with three solo blocks and two assists. Aqui was tall at the net with two solo blocks and four assists.

Next up for the Tartans is a tournament at Susquehanna University on Friday, September 15 and 16. There the Tarans will open against Brockport at 5:00 p.m. Friday.