NORFOLK, Va. - The top seeded Clinton College volleyball team saw their exciting season come to an end on Saturday as they fell 3-0 to #2 seed Carolina University in the championship game of the NCCAA South Regional.
The Golden Bears first upended #4 seed Paine College 3-0 in the semifinals Friday evening at Regent University in Norfolk, VA while CU defeated #3 Regent 3-1 to advance to the finals.
CLINTON 3, PAINE 0
In Clinton's semifinal win on Friday, the Bears defeated the Lions by scores of 25-14, 25-18, and 25-17 led by 41 total kills as the team hit at a .351 clip. They were led by junior middle blocker Alexia Cunningham's season-high of 16 kills as she hit .700 with 4 blocks. Fellow middle, freshman Monica Burns also played very well notching 13 kills and hitting .632 with 8 digs, 3 aces, and 2 blocks.
Clinton hit .448 in the first registering 14 kills on just one error before hitting .321 in the second set and .300 in the third with 12 kills in the second game and 15 in the third.
Freshman setter Sierra Faulkner led CC with 34 assists along with 5 digs, 2 blocks and 2 kills while junior libero Love Landon had 9 digs. Defensive specialists Tatiana Maddox and Ashanti Washington combined for 8 digs, 2 aces, and 2 assists. Outside hitter Sierra Smith also recorded 6 kills with 5 digs and an ace.
CAROLINA 3, CLINTON 0
The first meeting of the season between the Bears and Carolina saw CU win a competitive first set 25-23 before taking the next two via scores of 25-18 and 25-17. The opening set had CU with 11 kills and the Bears with 9 kills and 9 attack errors. The second set featured 13 kills from Carolina hitting .219 while CC hit .069 with 8 kills. The third set saw the Bruins hit .310 with 11 kills while Clinton also notched 11 kills but hit .194. No play by play was available.
Leading the Bears was Burns with 8 kills and zero errors as she hit .471 with 5 digs and 2 blocks while fellow middle, Cunningham, had 7 kills, 2 digs and a hand in five blocks. Junior outside hitter Amoni Washington then led with 7 kills and 7 digs while Smith recorded 5 kills and 12 digs. Faulkner, the setter, chipped in with 27 assists, an ace, two blocks, and five digs with Landon adding six digs.
Clinton finishes their season wth a record of 16-12, the most wins in school history.