Eagles Set to Take on CIU in Semi-finals of AAC Tournament

By Erinn Marroquin 

KINGSPORT, TN.- The 3rd seeded Reinhardt University Eagles are headed to the semi-finals of the Appalachian Athletic Conference with a win over 6th seeded Union College (KY.), 3-1 – 25-14, 25-22, 22-25, 25-20. 

"Tonight's match was a hard-fought battle versus a good Union team. I was really proud of how we started but we knew Union would adjust and get back in the match. To their credit, end of set 2 and they did just that. Their libero is Libero of the Year and I believe she dug 29 balls in that match. Our defense and some timely kills by our offense in big moments were a big reason we were able to pull off tonight's match. 

We started pretty smooth with great serving and offense, but errors caught up to us as the match went on. It was definitely a team win tonight as we went to our bench. We are well aware that tomorrow we will not be able to have thirty-plus hitting errors and win. 

We came into today trying to go 1-0 and to our team's credit they pulled that off. I want to say thank you to God and give Him all the Glory!" 

Reinhardt was full steam ahead as they started the first set with a 7-1 lead. The Bulldogs started gaining momentum, forcing Head Coach Brian Goodhind to call a timeout at 16-12. This pep talk was just what the Eagles needed as they went on a 9-2 run to finish the set 25-14. 

Reinhardt showed no signs of slowing down as a 12-5 lead in the second stanza made Union call their first timeout of the set. The Bulldogs battled back within 3 points making the score 23-20 when Coach Goodhind took his turn to call a timeout. Two late kills were just what the Eagles needed to walk away from the second set 25-22. 

The Bulldogs proved they were not going home without a fight as they started the third set with a 6-2 lead. 6 kills for the Eagle offense evened out the score to 8-8, but a run from Union helped them secure the lead again at 15-13 going into the first timeout of the stanza. This drive paired with unforced errors from RU late in the game allowed Union to take the third set 25-22. 

The Eagles wanted to make their dominance known and followed through on this desire with a 10-7 start to the last set. Reinhardt widened the gap to 19-14 as Union struggled to regain its footing. Two blocks from Reinhardt put the nail in the coffin for Union as the former closed out the last set 25-20 to take the match 3-1. 

Reinhardt v. Union 

· Jacoby Sims led the way with 17 kills and Abby Infante was the only other player in double digits with 11. 

· Holly Heath showed she was worthy of her 1st Team All-Conference accolades with 21 digs. 

· Sophia Graziano was second with 13 digs, as Alma Vazquez-Nunez and Sarah Sweet followed closely behind with 12 digs with Sweet leading the team in service aces with 4. 

· Taylor Sawdy had another double-double with 43 assists (10.75/set) and 12 digs. 

Reinhardt will play 2nd seeded Columbia International University (SC.) in the semi-finals of the Appalachian Athletic Conference tournament tomorrow, November 12th at 12:30 PM. 

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