CONWAY, S.C. – The Chanticleer volleyball team took control of the Sun Belt East Division on Sunday afternoon with a 3-1 (23-25, 25-18, 25-16, 25-16, 25-15) victory over the South Alabama Jaguars (12-6, 5-1 SBC) to improve to 6-0 in Sun Belt play and 12-4 overall on the season.
Both teams entered into Sunday's showdown with identical 5-0 conference records and tied for first place in the SBC East Division. Doris Carter (15), Cheyenne Jones (14), and Jelena Prolic (10) combined for 39 of the 51 CCU kills to help their team extend its winning streak.
Coastal setter Brigitta Petrenko finished with a match-high 35 assists to tally her fourth match in the last five times out with 35 assists or more and earned her fifth-straight match of 20 plus assists. The Eger, Hungary native, helped the Chants offensively as she matched her season-high of five kills.
South Alabama earned their largest lead of the first set, 23-17, but Carter and Jones were able to keep CCU in the set and close the advantage to 23-21 with a pair of kills by each player. The Jags held off the Chants for the 25-23 set-one win behind Maddie Sobolieski's five kills and a .367 team hitting percentage.
Coastal Carolina found a flaw in the South Alabama attack in set two, holding USA to a -.079 hitting percentage. However, Carter was crucial in the Chants' turnaround in the second stanza with a set-high three blocks. Offensively, the Lexington, Ky. native, helped CCU run off five consecutive points going into the media timeout with a 15-11 advantage with two of her three kills. The Chanticleers went on to win 25-18, with Jones adding a team-high five kills in the set.
The teal and black never trailed from the outset of the third frame, winning 25-16. The Chanticleers hit an impressive .357, and again, they held the Jaguars to under a .000 hitting percentage for the second-consecutive set at -.030. Sophomore middle blocker Madison Lowery had three of her match-high six blocks in the set. Coastal had three runs of four straight points to help in the third-set win, while Carter led the team offensively with four kills and no errors on seven attempts.
With Coastal Carolina holding a 6-5 advantage in set four, the graduate transfer Carter served the Chanticleers to an 8-0 run. The junior Prolic tallied three of her 10 kills during the run, giving CCU a 14-5 advantage. The Chanticleers would not surrender the lead from that point forward, winning 25-15.
Coastal libero Lina Perugini had a team-high 15 digs in the match victory.
Jags' players Sobolieski and Carissa Bradford had a team-high 11 kills, while Kailey Keeble led the USA squad with a team-high 29 assists in the loss.
The Chanticleers look to improve on their winning streak next weekend at home with matches versus ULM on Friday, Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. ET and Louisiana on Sunday, Oct. 17 at noon ET. Both matches will be available on ESPN+.
For complete coverage of CCU volleyball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalVball (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram), or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUsports.com.
