RALEIGH, N.C. – Agata Lesiak,
Jalyn Stout, and
Emily Fowler recorded double-digit kills to lead the Coastal Carolina volleyball team to a 3-2 (19-25, 25-18, 25-18, 22-25, 16-14) road win over the NC State Wolfpack at the James T. Valvano Arena at William Neal Reynolds in Raleigh, N.C., on Sunday afternoon. With the win, the Chanticleers improved to 4-7 on the season, while the Wolfpack fell to 5-3 overall with the loss.
Coastal was led by Lesiak with 16 kills, while Stout and Fowler tallied 11 and 10 put-downs, respectively. Stout finished with a match-high 27 assists with
Cagla Bengi adding 16 helpers.
Defensively, CCU totaled 12 blocks as
Dilara Unal totaled four stops with
Valentina Varani and Fowler stopping two kill attempts each at the net.
Sydney Lewis (15), Stout (13), and
Emma Van Elslande (11) combined for 39 of the team's 63 digs.
NC State was led by Amanda Rice, Ava Brizard, and Madison Williams, who had 18, 14, and 11 kills, respectively, while Jada Allen and Courtney Bryant tallied five kills apiece. Naomi Cabello finished with a team-high 23 assists.
The Wolfpack stopped 33 kill attempts with Rice making seven stops as Allen and Lily Cropper tallied six blocks, while Maryna Leoniak (11) and Skye Stokes (11) had double-digit digs.
In the opening set, NC State took a 5-3 lead before the Chanticleers scored six unanswered for a 9-5 advantage, ignited by an unforced error by the host team and capped by a kill by Stout. After the Wolfpack evened the score at 12-12 with a 7-3 run, CCU used a 3-0 surge to take a 15-12 lead, highlighted by kills by Fowler and Stout.
After an 8-2 spurt by the Pack, CCU trailed 20-17 before NC State outscored the visitors in Teal and Bronze 5-2 to take a 1-0 match lead with the 25-19 first-set win.
In the second set, the two teams traded the first 12 rallies to remain even at 6-6 before the Chants charged to the lead at 12-7 with a 6-1 burst that included a pair of kills by Van Elslande. After trading the next two points, the Wolfpack scored three straight points to cut the CCU lead to 13-11. Coastal answered with three points, highlighted by kills by Lesiak and Stout to lead 16-11.
The next eight rallies went back and forth with the Chanticleers leading 20-15 before NC State used a 3-0 spurt to cut the deficit to 20-18 only to see Coastal Carolina score the final five points to even the match at 1-1 with the 25-18 win.
The Chants raced to a 5-1 lead in the third set before increasing their advantage to 10-4 that included kills by Varani and Stout. CCU doubled the Wolfpack at 16-8, highlighted by a pair of kills by Stout. Coastal increased its lead to 24-13 before NC State cut the lead to 24-18 before a Lesiak kill gave the Chanticleers a 25-18 third-set win to lead 2-1 in the match.
In the fourth set, the home-standing Wolfpack took a 6-4 lead through the first 10 rallies before Coastal evened the set at 9-9 with a 5-3 run that included a service ace by Van Elslande. NC State scored five unanswered to take a 14-9 lead as the Chants scored two quick points to trail 14-11.
The two teams traded the next eight points with the Pack holding a 18-15 lead before Coastal tied it up at 19-19 with a 4-1 spurt, sparked by a NC State service error and capped by a Lesiak kill. The Wolfpack evened the match at 2-2 by outscoring the Chants 6-4 to pick up the fourth-set victory at 25-22.
In the fifth and final set, the two teams traded the first four rallies before NC State scored two quick points to lead 4-2. CCU and the Wolfpack traded the next eight points with the Chanticleers trailing 8-6. The Chants pushed in front at 10-8 with a 4-0 burst, highlighted by a second service ace by Van Elslande. A 6-4 run by the Pack set the home team up for match point at 14-13 only to see the Chants answer with a 3-0 surge to win the fifth set 16-14 and match 3-2.
Coastal Carolina will return to Conway, S.C., for the Sun Belt Conference opener with Marshall on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 27-28. The opening serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on Friday and 2 p.m. ET on Saturday.
For complete coverage of CCU women's 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.
