Columbia, SC - The CIU women's volleyball took the floor Friday night in front of a lively home crowd in the Moore Fitness Center. The Rams would battle the Lions of Bryan College, an Appalachian Athletic Conference opponent from Tennessee. Bryan came into the match 11-6 overall and 5-2 in the conference. CIU would lose a hard-fought match to the Lions but not for lack of effort.

How it Happened

The Rams would feed off of the home crowd early and dominate the Lions in the first set. While Bryan would stay close in the set, it was the Rams that had control. The Lions struggled to defend against the attacks of Carla Cauchi, De'Asija Harden, and Lily Tang. Mackenzie Sanchez would seal the win with back to back aces and the Rams would win the set 25-21.

CIU would struggle from the outset of the second game. Errors would cost the Rams vital points and Bryan would win the second set 25-13. The third set would mirror the first of the match with the Rams feeding of the energy of a packed Moore Fitness Center. Strong defense from Gabriela Vega and Tang held the Lions offensive in check and CIU a 2-1 set lead after 25-19 win. 

Megan Lung would come alive offensively in the final two sets, but the Lions would win big in the 4th game 25-12. The deciding set would seemingly be in the Lions favor as they would score 6 unanswered points to start the set. Megan Lung would stop the bleeding with a kill but Bryan would push ahead and go up 14-6. The Lions would struggle to score the deciding point and CIU would score 5-points off a Lung block and Bryan errors, but CIU would finally yield to the Lions and drop the set 15-11.

Box Score Highlights

• Carla Cauchi posted 7 kills and 4 aces.

• Freshman Megan Lung had another quality match with 9 kills and 3 blocks.

• Mackenzie Sanchez is proving to be one of the most consistent setters in the AAC with 35 assists on the evening. 

Up Next

CIU takes on Tennesee Wesylan at 1 PM on Saturday in the Moore Fitness Center.