โcolor: #222222; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;โ>The Lady Aggies
volleyball team played at Fleming Gymnasium in
the
โbackground-position: 50% 100%;โ>UNCG Volleyball
Invitational on Aug. 26 and 27
The Lady
Aggies volleyball team played at Fleming Gymnasium in
the
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>UNCG Volleyball
Invitational on Aug. 26 and 27.
North
Carolina A&T finished the weekend 0-4 losing to Evansville
(25-7, 12, 16) and Coastal Carolina (25-16, 17, 10) on Aug. 26, and
continued their losing streak
the
following day after being defeated by East Tennessee State (25-8,
11, 14) and
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>UNCGreensboro (25-16,
18, 17).
For
A&T, the tournament was their first six-on-six experience this
year because they only have six players, while all the other teams
consisted of 13 or more players.
In their
first match of the season, the Aggies struggled to find ways to
score and were unable to keep the Evansville Purple Aces from
scoring. Most A&T players are getting accustomed to playing new
positions due to their lack of bodies on the team, mainly Chelsea
Fox.
Fox is
getting in the rhythm of playing a full-time setter for the Aggies,
a position she has not played since middle school. Fox made the
All-Tournament Team, so she seems to be well fit for the job and
thinks the team will be fine with only six players.
As the
tournament went on, the Aggies showed improvement throughout each
match. โIt [the tournament] is going pretty well. Weโre playing
better with six players.
We have
better chemistry and coach is really patient and that helps,โ said
Fox. Coach Hal Clifton exclaimed how proud he was of his team,
specifically because he was announced as head coach just less than
a month ago.
The โSuper
Sixโ as Clifton has named his team, are made up of just five
sophomores and one junior, Andrea Evans. โThey have a lot of
potential. Theyโre still young. I think theyโre going to be a great
team in the next two years when they are all seniors and have new
players,โ said Amber Inman.
Inman
played on the team last year as captain and senior setter and now
coaches at Smith High School. She came to the tournament to support
the young team and their new coach. โHeโs very patient with us said
Inman.
The six
Aggies fought hard to stay competitive in the matches, and many
could tell there was a definite improvement within the squad. In
the match against
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>UNCG, the Aggies
made a few good runs to keep rallies going but their defense was
not enough to contain the powerful attacks
by
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>UNCGโs Karrian Chambers.
Chambers
had ten
kills total in the match.
They
proved that they could stay in the game but not quite pull through.
โI think itโs a new era for them,โ said
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>UNCG Coach
Patrick Nicholas. โJust watching them play, compared to last
season, their fundamentals look a lot better. You can tell theyโre
more skilled, more trained. That team keeps playing.
They play
with
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>pride.โ Fox
led the team with 56 assists, and
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>Jeana Daniels
led the team with 22 kills in the tournament.
โcolor: #222222; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;โ>โ klrobin2@ncat.edu and
follow her
โbackground-repeat: no-repeat ! important;โ>@KayRobinson92 on
- Karmen Robinson, Sports Editor