MONTEVALLO, Ala. – The University of Montevallo volleyball team is headed to Aiken, S.C. for the USC Aiken Invitational on Friday, Sept. 13 through Saturday, Sept. 14.
Last Time Out
The Falcons are coming off a loss to Southeastern Oklahoma State at the Reddie-Tiger Invitational. In the match, Montevallo set a season-high of 11 total blocks against the Storm.
Nikol Antova led UM with seven kills in the match while
Colton Thompson and
Blakeley Robbins combined for 26 assists in three sets. Antova and
Ava Wind both had double-digit digs in the match.
How To Follow
Montevallo vs. North Greenville / Sept. 13 at 5:00 p.m. CT
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Montevallo vs. Carson-Newman / Sept. 14 at 10:00 a.m. CT
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Montevallo vs. Francis Marion / Sept. 14 at 2:00 p.m. CT
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About Montevallo
Nikol Antova leads the Falcons with 35 kills and 2.92 kills per set. Through the first weekend of the season, Antova is ninth in the Gulf South Conference in kills. The freshman is also second on the team with 24 digs.
Danielle Greene kicked off her junior campaign with 10 total blocks (.77 per set). Greene leads the team, is ninth inside the GSC and is two blocks away from cracking the top-five in the conference.
Colton Thompson had double-digit assists in all four matches this past weekend. Thompson currently has a 36-match streak with 10 or more assists, dating back to 2022. She currently leads the team in service aces with seven.
Scouting North Greenville
In the first match of the tournament, the Falcons will take on the Trailblazers of North Greenville. The Trailblazers went 23-7 in 2023 and lost in the semifinal match of the Conference Carolinas tournament. NGU comes in with a 1-3 record and on a three-match losing streak. The Trailblazers won their first match of the season, 3-0, but lost the last three by scores of 2-3, 2-3 and 0-3.
Anna Fiddelke leads NGU with 42 kills while Samantha Ball has 40. Ball has two double-doubles this season with a 17 kill-12 dig match against Lander on Sept. 6 and a 14 kill-19 dig match against Tusculum on Sept. 7. Samantha Ball leads the Trailblazers with 12 service aces this season. Fiddelke has the most total blocks for North Greenville with 11. As a team, they have 170 kills, 152 assists, 208 digs and 21 total blocks in four matches.
This will be the first match up between Montevallo and North Greenville is both respective programs histories.
Scouting Carson-Newman
In day two of the USC Aiken Invitational, Montevallo will take on Carson-Newman who is coming off a 14-17 record in 2023. The Eagles currently have a record of 3-1 with their lone loss of the season coming against No. 6 Missouri-St. Louis who they took to five sets. CNU has wins over Harding (3-2), Lincoln Memorial (3-1) and Gulf South Conference foe, Union (3-1).
Emerson Ahsmuhs leads the Eagles with 56 kills which is the third most in the South Atlantic Conference. Ahsmuhs has a .301 hitting percentage, 14 digs and eight total blocks on the 2024 season. Through four matches, Blair Cherry has 179 assists on the season including a 50-assist match against Union on Sept. 7. Cherry currently holds the highest assist per set in the SAC at 9.94.
The Falcons are searching for their first win against Carson-Newman as they are 0-2 against the Eagles which match up in 2012 and 2015.
Scouting Francis Marion
The final match of the weekend will come against the Francis Marion Patriots who come in with an overall record of 1-2. FMU won their first match of the season 3-2 against Coker but have lost their most recent matches against Wingate (0-3) and West Virginia Wesleyan (2-3).
The Patriots currently have four players with 20 or more kills this season and have a hitting percentage of .141 as a team this season. Mya Mendoza leads Francis Marion with 105 assists in three matches. The junior setter has a double-double of 45 assists and 13 digs and has two other matches with 25 or more assists.
Montevallo has a 5-3 record against Francis Marion dating back to when the Falcons and Patriots were conference rivals in the Peach Belt Conference. Montevallo has won the most recent match between the two schools, 3-1, in 2016.
Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Montevallo volleyball by visiting montevallofalcons.com or by following the team on Instagram at @montevallovolleyball or on Twitter (X) at @MontevalloVB
