DeLand, Fla. ? Sophomore outside hitter Stephanie Canfield (Panama City, Fla.) connected for a career-high 12 kills and .409 hitting percentage to help lead the Stetson volleyball team (1-3) to its first win of the 2008 season as the Hatters beat The Citadel (2-3) three sets to one in the Holiday Inn Stetson Invitational. Set scores were 25-13, 25-22, 14-25, 25-18.
Canfield, who did not enter the team's home opener until the second set, earned nine of her kills in the final two sets in front of a raucous cheering section of her old Mosley High School teammates. Freshman setter Jennica Hagberg (Niceville, Fla.) tallied her first career double-double, adding five kills to 38 digs and 10 assists. She hit .500 in the match.
Stetson blew out the Bulldogs in the first set 25-13 on the strength of an early 8-0 run that featured four kills from senior outside hitter Rebecca Orzechowicz (Miami, Fla.) Orzechowicz finished with a match-high 15 kills while hitting .444.
The second set was much tighter as The Citadel fought off an early Hatter lead to go ahead 17-16. Stetson would respond with a 5-1 run keyed by a kill and block from freshman middle blocker Sam Freeman (Gulf Breeze, Fla.) to seize control.
The Citadel raced out to an 11-3 lead in Set 3 and never looked back, going on to win 25-14. Rachel Sanders had five kills for the Bulldogs in that set.
When the Hatters fell behind 8-3 to start the fourth set, it appeared as if the match was destined to go the distance, but Stetson dug in its heels from there and chipped its way back into a 15-15 tie. Consecutive Canfield kills put Stetson ahead for good and the Hatters went on to end the match on a 13-3 scoring streak.
“Stephanie was so fired up to play in front of her old friends and she really was awesome tonight,” Hatters Head Coach Cheryl Carlson said. “I liked the way our team grabbed the momentum back after giving it away in the third set. It's always huge to win your home opener.”
Junior middle blocker Laura Boyd (La Crescenta, Calif.) turned in an excellent performance, notching eight kills without making an error and hitting .421 overall. Freeman finished with four kills and seven block assists for the Hatters, who hit .306 as a team. Senior libero Melanie Boyer (New Holland, Ill.) recorded eight digs.
Sanders led the Bulldogs with 13 kills and seven digs while Jessica Maas added 11 kills and Ashley Winter had 11 digs. Dual setters Emily Hill (25 assists, nine digs) and Alyssa Holum (14 assists, nine digs) kept The Citadel competitive throughout.
In other action from the opening day of the Holiday Inn Stetson Invitational, the College of Charleston swept through Robert Morris and The Citadel in three sets each. The tournament concludes tomorrow with three matches, two of them involving the Hatters. Stetson faces Robert Morris at 11 a.m. and College of Charleston at 5 p.m. while the Bulldogs take on RMU at 3 p.m.
