APSU Sports Information
Johnson City, TN – Austin Peay State University’s volleyball team could not get on track in its 2016 season opener, dropping a three-set decision (19-25, 10-25, 16-25) to host East Tennessee, Friday night at the DoubleTree Hotel Buccaneer Challenge in Brooks Gym.
Big East Tennessee (1-0) runs were the dominant story in all three sets.
Austin Peay (0-1) responded to its early offensive woes by turning in a new starting six for the third set with sophomore Kaylee Taff and freshman Ginny Gerig each moving into the lineup. The switch seemed to have a positive effect early, as Austin Peay battled to a 7-5 lead. However, ETSU used a 5-0 run to gain control of the set and a later 5-0 burst to seal the win.
The Govs were held to 21 kills in the three-set contest, sophomore Christina White leading the way with seven kills. Junior transfer Kaitlyn Teeter paced the defensive effort with 11 of APSU’s 35 digs.
Milhorn led East Tennessee with 12 kills and a .348 attack percentage. Massey finished with four kills and four blocks.
Austin Peay will not have to wait long to get another opportunity to find the win column with an 8:30am, Saturday contest against Troy. The Govs then face USC Upstate in a 1:30pm contest.
Inside the Box Score
White returns to pace offense
After missing 2015 due to injury, redshirt sophomore Christina White made an early statement with a kill for the season’s first point. She would finish with a team-best seven kills while chipping in a block and a trio of digs. It was White’s best offensive outing since the 2014 season finale (12 kills vs. Belmont).
Carger conjures positive start
Sophomore Logan Carger picked up where she left off in 2015, notching four kills to finish second on the team. That matched her output in the 2015 season finale against Southeast Missouri, which ended a stretch of seven strong outings to end that campaign.
Teeter contributes in first Govs outing
Junior Kaitlyn Teeter hit double-digit dig territory in her first match as a Governor, leading the squad with 11 digs. The Lipscomb transfer also chipped in a pair of kills and a block in her first foray in the red and white.
Rough offensive start stymies season’s launch
The Govs uncharacteristically could not get the offense going in its season-opening match, posting 21 kills against 23 errors. It was APSU’s first negative attack outing since September 25th, 2015 at UT Martin.
However, the opening night saw leading hitters Ashley Slay and Sammie Ebright foiled offensively. Slay was charged with six attack errors while Ebright was held to three kills against two attack errors.
Box Score
Austin Peay 0-1 vs. ETSU 1-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Records | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ETSU | (3) | 25 | 25 | 25 | 1-0 |
| Austin Peay | (0) | 19 | 10 | 16 | 0-1 |
