Pioneers Split at CVCC Tri-Match

The Spartanburg Methodist Pioneer volleyball team returned to the court after matches being cancelled due to hurricane Ian. What was supposed to be a weekend packed with ranked opponents turned into a tri-match as teams had to drop out due to rescheduled matches. Your Pioneers took on the Red Hawks and the Statesman in Hickory, North Carolina on Saturday.

Catawba Valley

SMC volleyball swept Catawba Valley 3-0 in a convincing fashion. With set scores of 25-15, 25-22, and 25-15, this was the first time SMC has beaten the Red Hawks in over a decade. This monumental win came at the hands of Zuzanna Michalska hitting .345, 23 assists from Ashley Gagnon, and 14 digs from Delaney Castro.

Richard Bland

The Statesman who are ranked #5 in NJCAA Division II proved just why their record is 17-2. They are a scrappy team with efficient blockers that made SMC adjust their normal scoring patterns. Kendall Meinders and Joanna Barr lead the offense in hitting efficiency while Delaney Castro commanded the defense with 23 digs. It came down to the Pioneers just making more mistake at critical times in the match that lead Richard Bland to come away with a 3-1 victory.

“With all the schedule changes these past couple of weeks, I am proud of how this team responded. It can be difficult to be off that long and come in against good opponents. Having us beat Catawba the way we did truly shows how SMC volleyball is improving. It’s good to know that we can hang with a high caliber team like Richard Bland even though we didn’t play our best. We’re still on a roller coaster so I’m hoping we can grow more consistent these last few tournaments.”