Senior leadership guided the Lady Tiger volleyball team to its first tournament title of the season over the Labor Day weekend.
The team left North Carolina with three wins and the tournament championship after a stellar performance at the Bulldog Classic in Asheville, N.C. Leading the way for the Lady Tigers, who are off to their best start since the 1998 season at 3-0, were seniors Amie Hamilton, the tournament MVP, and Ginger Garrett, who was also named to the all-tournament team.
Head coach Carrie Yerty said Hamilton’s play could have been the difference in the tournament.
“Amie was very consistent all weekend and she truly deserved the MVP honors,” Yerty said. “Her serving dominated and her setting was the key to her offensive success.”
Hamilton, a 5-4 setter, averaged 11 assists in the tournament and also managed 15 digs and 13 service aces for the tourney. Garrett, who at 5-10 plays the outside hitter position, finished with 34 kills and 37 digs.
The Lady Tigers beat UNC Asheville 3-0 in their match Friday, which saw Garrett as well as senior Emily Eichmann and sophomore Shella Neba finish with 11 kills each.
On Saturday, the team won its two matches against Morehead State and South Alabama.
Eichmann recorded another big performance in the Saturday opener against Morehead State. She had 10 kills on 28 attempts to lead the team in hitting.
The team also showed up big on the defensive side of the ball. Hamilton had 11 defensive digs, senior outside hitter Adrianne Emonds added 18, Brittany Barnett had 13 and Garrett led the team with 22. The 3-0 victory made the team’s record 2-0 with the championship left to play.
In the championship match versus South Alabama, Garrett showed up big again as she posted 16 kills and six defensive digs. Edmonds had 13 defensive digs while Hamilton had 10.
The Lady Tigers will travel to Kent, Ohio this week for the Kent State Tournament, which begins Friday and is scheduled to feature LaSalle, Robert Morris and Cornell.
