Jaguars upend Lander, USC Aiken in key PBC matches

By J.Ben Haynes | Sports writer

On senior weekend, the Augusta University volleyball team went undefeated, beating the first-place Lander Bearcats 3-2 on Friday, Nov. 1, and the second-place USC Aiken Pacers 3-1 on Saturday, Nov. 2, in Peach Belt Conference action.

With the two wins, the Jaguars moved to 3-3 in PBC play and 15-5 overall.

Against Lander on Friday, the Jaguars found themselves down 2-1 after the first three sets, but rallied to win the fourth and fifth sets—and the match.

In the fourth set, the Jaguars were down 21-18, but went on an 8-3 run, which was led by three Sophia Kruczko kills, to win the set 26-24.

Augusta used all of the momentum from the fourth set comeback to dominate the fifth set, winning 15-6 behind two crucial service aces from Marah Zenner.

Jacklyn Simms finished with a team high 15 kills on a .140 attack percentage. The Jaguar’s defense was stellar, with four players eclipsing 15 digs, led by Rylie Harris’ 26 digs.

Senior Janvier Buggs had 30 assists and 15 digs. Mikayla Kline had nine kills for AU.

The Bearcats were led by outside hitter Katie Miller, who had 22 kills and 26 saves. Madde Blake added 15 kills and 17 digs. Lauren Dow had a game-high 41 assists.

Jaguar Coach Sharon Quarles made a key substitution to start the fourth set, inserting Layne Witherspoon into the lineup. The sophomore middle blocker from Wildwood, Mo., was sensational with five kills in the fourth set and the set winner on an assist from Buggs. Witherspoon would finish with seven kills.

AU hit at a .169 clip, compared to a .156 evening for Lander. The Jags had 69 kills, compared to 54 for the Bearcats.

The blocking tandem of seniors Madelyn Eden and Jada Suguturaga played a key role in the AU victory. Eden finished with eight kills and five blocks. Suguturaga had seven kills and five blocks. Senior Marin Freeland had seven kills on a .250 hitting night.

In a quick turnaround, Augusta took care of business once again, this time in a rematch with rival USC-Aiken.

After dropping the first set 25-19, the Jaguars won the next three sets by scores of 25-17, 25-19, 25-14.

Eden was dominant for Augusta, finishing with 12 kills on a stellar .476 attack percentage. Witherspoon was also a force offensively, finishing with 11 kills on a .381 attack percentage.

However, the story of the match was Augusta’s defense, finishing with 32 block assists and 3 solo blocks as a team. Eden finished with 12 kills on a .476 hitting percentage and six blocks. Suguturaga had nine blocks and five kills. Suguturaga now leads the country in blocks per set, and the Jaguars as a team our seventh.

“They understand that this is late in the season,” said Quarles of her players. “We are getting close to tournament time. And we just have to go out there and compete, and play, and do what is expected of us.”

Witherspoon chipped in 11 kills at a .381 clip for the Jaguars, and Harris led the defense with 22 digs. Marin Freeland bombed home nine kills with seven blocks, and Kruczko added eight kills and three blocks.

Setters Zenner and Buggs had 24 and 19 assists, respectively. Harris and Simms each had two service aces. Simms continued her strong weekend with seven kills.

For her outstanding weekend, Harris was named Peach Belt specialist of the week.

The Jaguars hit at a robust .229 clip and held the Pacers (4-3, 12-6) to a .026 afternoon. AU had 50 kills, while USCA had 34.

Emily Lammers led USC AIken with nine kills and 14 digs.

The Jaguars’ weekend sweep of Lander and USC Aiken tightened up the PBC standings with two weeks left in the regular season. (See graphic below.) Augusta is a half game behind the Pacers for third place and one behind Flagler for second place, although the Saints won the regular-season series between the two teams.

The Jaguars will be back in action on Thursday, Nov. 7 at Christenberry Fieldhouse as they take on the UNC Pembroke Braves at 6 p.m.

Contact J.Ben Haynes at jamhaynes@augusta.edu.