COLUMBIA, S.C. - CIU volleyball duplicated their early Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) success from 2021 as they have now started the season 6-0 in the AAC for the second consecutive year. The Rams accomplished the feat by defeating Truett McConnell (Ga.) 3-1 (25-15, 30-32, 25-22, 25-12) on the road Tuesday night. The Rams did give up their first set loss in conference play but moved to 16-6 overall on the year with the victory. 

That first set loss came after it took 32 points from the Bears in set two to take down the Rams. CIU quickly bounced back, however, wrapping up the match with a convincing 25-12 set four win. The Rams had several players contribute offensively, with four players reaching double-digit kills. Kira Rymer led that group with 16 kills and a .484 hitting percentage. Fellow upperclassman Jadaeya Morrell was equally as impressive with 13 kills hitting at .500 clip. Kamelia De Jesus was the catalyst for much of the offensive success as the veteran setter picked up a season-high in assists with 47. The Rams had three players reach double-digit digs, with Kelcey Mangum leading the way with 25. The Rams recorded 14 block assists as a team and two solo blocks, with CIU's length keeping the Bears at a .150 hitting percentage. 

What Coach Amber Haver is saying: "The events that occurred at tonight's match definitely made it interesting.  In set two, we were up 14-8, and allowed surrounding chaos to serve as distractions, which caused a 32-30 set loss. I'm disappointed that we couldn't pull that set out and allowed the chaos to knock us off our game- if even for a short while. I believe we learned from it and got better tonight. "

Up Next: The Rams will host Reinhardt (Ga.) on Friday, Sept. 23, at 6:30 PM.