ANDERSON, S.C. – In the second meeting between the two team in six days, No. 2 seed Anderson blanked third-seeded Carson-Newman, 3-0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-22) in the semifinals of the South Atlantic Conference Spring Volleyball Championship, Thursday night at the Abney Athletic Center.

"The staff and I were pretty pleased with our overall level of play for the majority of the night," said Anderson head coach Todd Hay. "It was some of our best this spring. The defense was able to slow their attack and limit their kills which allowed us to run our offense a better clip. Unfortunately, we lost a bit of focus late in set three on serve-receive and hitting which allowed them to get back in the set. However, we had built a good lead up to that point and we were able to hang on. I'm very happy for this team to be able to play in the SAC finals and get one step closer to our overall goal."

Anderson (9-2) extended its win streak to nine matches and advances to meet top-seeded Wingate in the tourney championship on Saturday afternoon, while Carson-Newman finished its season at 7-4.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Senior Regan Duty led all players with 14 kills, with junior outside hitter Maya Learmonth adding 10 kills. Freshman Sadie Kluner tallied nine kills and three block assists, with junior middle blocker Neely Shugart notching nine kills, a pair of solo blocks and five block assists. Sophomore Alexandra Petrilli shared match-high honors with 13 digs, while sophomore Lindsay McCurley notched seven digs. Junior setter Madison Roy dished out 41 assists and came up with five digs and a pair of block assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
Duty and Kluner combined for nine kills, with the Trojans posting a .312 hitting percentage.

Trailing by two (13-11), Kluner ignited a streak of 12 unanswered points by the Trojans that turned the two-point deficit into a commanding 10-point advantage. Behind Petrilli's strong serving, which included back-to-back aces, and with Duty fueling the run with three kills and a pair of blocks, the Trojans went on for the eight-point win.

Second Set
As accurate as the Trojans were in the first set, they were even hotter in the second frame – posting a .457 hitting percentage. Duty again led with five kills, while Kluner, Neely Shugart and Learmonth each posted four kills apiece.

This time it was Shugart who snapped an 11-11 deadlock with her second kill of the frame to spark a 9-2 run by the Trojans. The Rock Hill native added another kill and three block assists during the breakout, with Learmonth also chipping in a pair of kills.

The Eagles later got as close as five (23-18) before Duty and Kluner sandwiched kills around a kill by C-N's Emily Harnischfeger to finish off the win.

Third Set
The Trojans overcame 10 attack errors in the final set, with Duty again pacing the team with four kills.

AU broke away from an early 4-4 deadlock and steadily pushed out to a 14-7 advantage on an ace by McCurley. Carson-Newman climbed within four on three occasions, but could get no closer than 24-22 in the final moments before AU claimed the match on a service error.

ANDERSON STAT OF THE NIGHT
Duty posted a .636 hitting percentage on the night, which ties former standout Hailey Pittman for the fifth-highest accuracy in program history.

NOTABLES
• The Trojans are making their ninth consecutive trip to the conference tournament and 10th overall after joining the league for the 2010 campaign
• The Trojans have made two appearance in the SAC Tournament finals (2013 and 2014) and are seeking their first tournament title. Wingate has won 13 SAC Tournament championships.
• The Trojans improved to 9-9 in their ten SAC Tournament appearances
• The Eagles were the defending SAC Tournament and NCAA Southeast Region Champions and returned four starters from that squad.
• Carson-Newman defeated the Trojans in the opening round of the 2019 NCAA Southeast Regional.
• The Trojans and Eagles have met 28 times over the past 15 seasons, with 25 of the matchups occurring since AU joined the league in 2010. The overall series, which began in 2006, now sees AU holding a narrow, 15-14, edge.

UP NEXT
Top-seeded Wingate will play host to the Trojans in Saturday's Championship finals. First-serve is scheduled for 2 p.m.