GAINESVILLE, Ga. — CIU women's volleyball opened Appalachian Athletic Conference play Friday night, falling to Brenau University in four sets, 25-22, 24-26, 25-23, 25-14.
After dropping a competitive opening set, the Rams (4-9, 0-1 AAC) responded in the second. CIU battled through 12 ties and seven lead changes before pulling out a 26-24 win to even the match. Brenau answered by edging CIU 25-23 in another tightly contested third set before closing the match in the fourth.
Zcearia James led CIU with 11 kills while hitting .321. Katelynn Mundy added nine kills with just one error on 16 attempts to hit .500, while Mary Norwood also recorded nine kills. Maria Ferreira handed out 15 assists, Macy Brooks added 11 and Ashley Burgbacher led the Rams with 10 digs and three service aces. CIU is now 16-1 all time versus the Golden Tigers.
CIU will look to bounce back quickly as the Rams travel to Waleska, Ga., to face Reinhardt University on Saturday at 11 a.m.
