The Carolina University Women’s Volleyball team achieved a 3-2 record at the CAC Classic held in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The event spanned three days and included matches against several conference opponents.
On the opening day, Carolina University won both of its matches. In the first match, the Bruins secured a 3-2 win over Haskell Indian Nations University. Senior outside hitter SarahElizabeth Samuels led with 16 kills, while teammates Karli Totel and Britney Comolli contributed 13 and 14 kills respectively. Freshman libero Kai Horta made 31 digs, and setter Syvannah Poore provided 39 assists.
Later that day, the Bruins defeated Fisher College with a score of 3-1. Totel recorded 16 kills with a .289 hitting percentage, Comolli added 13 kills, and Samuels had seven. Poore delivered 25 assists and Horta contributed 18 digs.
On Saturday, Carolina faced defending conference champions Florida College in a closely contested match that went to five sets. The Bruins took the first two sets but ultimately lost as Florida College came back to win the final three sets. Comolli finished with 14 kills and Totel added another 16 with a .342 hitting percentage. Poore registered 26 assists while Horta had 22 digs.
Sunday saw freshman libero Kai Horta break the program’s single-match record for digs with 35 during a four-set loss to Florida National University. In their final match of the tournament, Carolina defeated Hesston College in four sets. Jordan Connolly led with 11 kills; Rachel Powell and Karli Totel contributed eight and ten kills respectively. Setter Natalia Cano had 15 assists and Horta ended her weekend performance with another strong defensive showing at 27 digs.
Head Coach Chelsea Jones commented on her team’s performance: “I’m incredibly proud of how this group battled. We faced five competitive programs in three days, and our players showed tremendous heart, especially coming together after tough moments. Kai’s record-breaking performance was a reflection of our defensive toughness as a whole. We’re continuing to grow stronger each week, and this weekend proved we can compete with anyone in our conference.”
Carolina University will next play Ferrum College on Tuesday, October 14 at Williams Gymnasium at 6 p.m., an event that will also serve as their annual DIG Pink Match.
