Sept. 4, 2009

Final Stats

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Junior Shantel Moore recorded her second double-double of the season with 12 kills and 11 digs in North Carolina Central University's 3-1 loss to Campbell Friday afternoon in the Holiday Inn Jefferson Cup. The Camels edged the Eagles by scores of 25-23, 18-25, 25-16 and 25-14.

"We came out firing in this match," said NCCU head coach Georgette Crawford-Crooks. "This was a really good match. We just needed that extra push to win, but the great thing is that we will see Campbell again. It is always good to see somebody that you will face again, especially when you get to face them at home"

Moore led the Eagle offense and contributed significantly on defense with four blocks. Along with Moore, two other Eagles made an impact on defense, recording double-digit digs. Belinda Behncke-Biney and Kiara Brown put on career performances, contributing career-highs in digs with 12 and 11, respectively.

Another threat on the net for the Eagles was Avaniki Campbell, who earned a career-high seven blocks in the match, leading the Eagles' blocking game. NCCU had a total of 19 blocks, dominating the Camels on the net. The Camels recorded 13 blocks in the match.

Offensively, Brown contributed 26 assists, while Behncke-Biney recorded nine kills. As a team, the Eagles tallied 43 kills and 37 assists. NCCU hit a .100 hitting percentage and had three service aces. Campbell had two of those aces for the Eagles.

Moore added a career-high six assists to her double-double performance, while Alexis John recorded a career-high four digs in the match. Sashalee Wallen joined the list of career performers with a career-high eight digs to add to the Eagles' strong defensive performance.

"I saw some really good things this afternoon," continued Crawford-Crooks. "We had a very solid defense, but we just needed a little bit more from our offense. We did very well in all different areas. We did very well on digs, very well on blocks and we were serving tough."

Campbell was led by Emily Werner and Allyson Goldbach on offense with 15 and 11 kills, respectively. Goldbach had a double-double for the Camels with 11 digs. Sarah Hill and Lauren Garza recorded double-digit digs with 11 and 13, respectively.

The Camels hit just five more kills than the Eagles with 48 and had one more dig than NCCU with 59. The Eagles forced 20 errors for the Camels, but Campbell managed to come away with the win, hanging tough and battling down to the end.

It was a back-and-forth battle for both teams with 12 tie scores and five lead changes throughout the entire match. In the first set, the Eagles jumped out early, but the Camels fought back to tie the set at 18 apiece. NCCU went up 23-21, just two points shy of taking the first set, which forced Campbell to call a timeout.

Out of the timeout, the Camels hit back-to-back points to tie the score at 23. Two more points would give Campbell the set and a 1-0 advantage in the match. The Eagles recorded 10 kills and hit .138 on offense. Defensively, they forced five errors and held Campbell to a .258 hitting percentage.

In an effort to stay in the match, the Eagles turned up the heat in the second set. NCCU jumped out to a11-4 lead, which forced a Campbell timeout. The Camels eventually cut the lead to four at 14-10, but the Eagles refused to let up. NCCU dominated the set, not allowing Campbell to take a lead or tie the score.

With 23-17 on the scoreboard, the Eagles were two points shy of a victory. With Brown on the service line, Campbell struggled to return the ball, giving the Eagles a 24-17 lead. A service error by Brown would follow to give the Camels a point. NCCU would come back and take control with a block assist by Wallen and Campbell to conclude the set. A 25-18 victory would give the Eagles their first set victory on the road.

NCCU hit .225 in the set with 14 kills and five errors. Their defense gave Campbell trouble, hitting a low .024 in that set with 10 kills and nine errors. The Eagles were unstoppable on defense with 11 blocks and 19 digs in that one set alone.

Campbell refused to give up hope and came back strong in the next two sets. The third set was a battle on both sides with five tie scores and three lead changes, but in the end, Campbell finished on top with a 25-16 victory over NCCU in the third set.

Hoping to stay alive, the Eagles stayed within two points of the Camels for the first half of the fourth set. Once the Camels hit 10, the Eagles struggled to slow Campbell down. The Camels defeated the Eagles, 25-14, in the set to claim a 3-1 victory.

The Eagles dropped to 1-5 on the season, while the Camels improved to 5-2. NCCU will have a chance to seek revenge when they host Campbell on Sept. 29 at 7 p.m. in Durham, N.C.

NCCU will conclude the final day of the tournament on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 1 p.m., where they will face the VCU Rams. Live statistics are available at www.virginiasports.com.

For more information on Eagles Volleyball, visit the official website of NCCU Athletics at www.NCCUEaglePride.com.