ASHEVILLE, N.C. – In the final event of the Bulldog Blue & White Showdown the Blue team came away with a 3-0 sweep (25-11, 25-23, 25-20) over the White team Thursday evening in volleyball. With the win, the week-long showcase of Bulldog Athletics ends with the Blue Bulldogs coming out on top, 5-2.
Set 1 – The opening frame of Thursday’s match proved to be the most lopsided of the three. The Blue team’s offense was clicking as it hit a combined .357 in the frame compared to just -.053 for the White team. Leading the charge was Peyton McClinton who notched six kills by herself. With McClinton and the rest of the Blue Bulldogs playing well, they never trailed and went on to take the first set, 25-11.
Set 2 – Team White would rebound in the second. The stanza was evenly matched across nearly every statistical category. Lexy Cole and Kat Cruser each contributed 6.5 points for the White squad to help them tie the score at 23 in the late going. The score being tied at 23, which was the seventh tied score of the set, quickly went the way of Team Blue as it went on to take the second frame as well, 25-23.
Set 3 – In what proved to be the final set of the evening, the two teams exchanged points in the early going. The score read 12-11 in favor of Team Blue before it rattled off a 4-0 run to extend the lead to five at 16-11. Blue would keep the pressure on and would lead by as many as eight points at the 20-12 mark. The White squad battled back to cut the deficit to three (23-20), but it proved too late as the Blue team finished off the set and the sweep, 25-20.
Stat Standouts – Overall, four Bulldogs scored 10 or more points in the contest. Cruser (12.5) and Cole (12) of Team White led the way for their team, while Hannah Spicer and Cecilia Stack both had 10.5 points for the Blue squad. Molly Hackett (Blue) had the most accurate hitting outing for attackers with at least 10 attempts checking in at .353. Defensively, six different Bulldogs recorded 10 or more digs. Maddy Johnson and McClinton both had 14 for the Blue team, while Anna Skryd totaled a team-high 13 for Team White. Finally, on the block, the duo of Stack (five block assists) and Spicer (one solo block, three block assists) posted the top numbers on the front line.
Blue & White Recap – The Bulldog Blue & White Showdown closed out with the Blue team winning five of the seven events. Blue won Volleyball, Men’s Soccer, Cross Country, Tennis, and Swimming & Diving, while White came out on top in Golf and Women’s Soccer.
