By Katherine Jamtgaard. ATLANTA, Ga. — The App State volleyball team defeated Georgia State in a five-set thriller (15-25, 25-14, 19-25, 25-19, 15-7), on the road Nov. 2.
The Mountaineers, who have won five of their last six matches, are 14-7 on the season and 8-2 in Sun Belt play. With the pair of wins on the weekend, App State moves to the top spot in the Sun Belt’s East Division.
“I’m so proud of our team,” said head coach Sarah Rumely Noble. “I say it all the time, but the belief is high, the grit is high, and the resiliency is high. That was a gutsy road performance in both matches this weekend. We can’t wait to be back in Holmes for Senior Weekend. We need all of App Nation out to support this team.”
App State 3, Georgia State 2
Junior Maya Winterhoff led the team with a career high 20 kills. She also recorded a hitting percentage of .390 on the afternoon. On the weekend, Winterhoff recorded a hitting percentage of .464 and averaged 4.22 kills per set. Following Winterhoff was senior Lulu Ambrose, who made 16 kills. Redshirt junior Addison Heidemann registered her eighth career double-double, leading the Mountaineers in assists (40) and matching with freshman Elise Marchal for the team highs in digs (11) and aces (4). Heidemann and Marchal combined for eight of App State’s 11 aces. Heidemann also averaged 9.67 assists per set for the weekend. Sophomore Ava Leahy went up for a team high six blocks in addition to her seven kills. Leahy totaled 10 blocks on the weekend (two solo, eight assists).
App State outpaced Georgia State in aces (11-6), kills (56-51), and assists (50-49).
In the first set, Georgia State found momentum early, taking a 10-3 lead. The Mountaineers chipped away at the deficit with kills from Hutchens, Winterhoff, and Leahy and a block from the duo of Heidemann and Leahy over the course of the set. Despite a last kill from Winterhoff, the Panthers took the set, 25-15.
The Mountaineers knotted the score eight times and traded the lead three times in the third set.
App State found momentum in the second set, jumping to a 6-0 lead after kills from Winterhoff and Marchal as well as three Heidemann aces. A pair of back-to-back kills from Winterhoff, as well as a Panther error extended App State’s lead to 9-2. Kills from Ambrose, Marchal, and Heideman, put the Mountaineers up 13-5. The Mountaineers went on a 7-2 run, extending the deficit to 21-10 after kills from Hutchens, Winterhoff, and Ambrose, and a pair of blocks from the duo of Marchal and Winterhoff. A Leahy kill followed by a block from Leahy and Heidemann brought the Mountaineers to set point, 24-12. The Panthers held the Mountaineers to two set points, but Ambrose slammed down a kill to seal the set for App State, 25-14.
The Mountaineers and Panthers knotted the score eight times and traded the lead thrice in the third set. App State managed to meet GSU at 12 all after a kill from Leahy. A kill from Roper gave the Mountaineers a 13-12 edge. Marchal tied things up at 15 all with a kill, but the Panthers broke the tie with a 6-0 run to take a 21-15 lead. Despite a solo block from Winterhoff, a block from Leahy and Heidemann, and a pair of kills from Ambrose, Georgia State took the set, 25-19.
The win puts the Mountaineers in first place in the Sun Belt’s East Division.
The Mountaineers flipped the script in the fourth set, clinching the set, 25-19 to push for a fifth. Winterhoff opened the set with a kill. The Panthers only managed to meet the Mountaineers once at 1-1, before App State pulled away, 4-1, with a block from Marchal and Winterhoff, a GSU error, and a kill from Ambrose. After a kill from Hutchens, another GSU error, and a kill from Winterhoff, App State took a 11-6 lead. Georgia State managed to come within one of App State’s lead (14-13), but the Mountaineers jumped ahead 18-15 after a pair of Leahy kills, and kills from Ambrose and Winterhoff. The Panthers managed to come back within one of the Mountaineers’ lead at 20-19, but App State clinched the set, 25-19, with a 5-0 run that featured kills from Winterhoff and Ambrose, as well as a Winterhoff ace, and a block from the duo of Leahy and Marchal.
In the fifth and final set, App State tied things up at two all after Heidemann served up an ace. Winterhoff managed to keep things tied at three all with a kill, but Georgia State managed to edge ahead, 5-3. Winterhoff slammed down her 20th kill of the match to cut Georgia State’s lead to one (5-4). Georgia State took a 6-4 edge with a kill, but a GSU error and Ambrose kill tied things up at six all and marked the start of an impressive 10-0 run for the Mountaineers that brought App State to set and match point (14-6). Marchal served all four of her aces within the 10-0 run, which also included two additional kills from Ambrose. Heidemann set Ambrose up for one final kill that sealed the set, 15-7, and clinched the match for the Mountaineers, 3-2.
Looking Ahead
The Mountaineers return to Boone to host Marshall for their final pair of home matches on Nov. 8 and 9. Friday’s match is set for 6 p.m. and will celebrate Most Valuable Professors Day. Saturday’s match is slated for 1 p.m. and will honor the Mountaineers’ graduating seniors: Lulu Ambrose, Cierra Huntley, and Lauren Pledger.
