Led by senior right side hitter Marin Freeland, the Augusta University volleyball team tamed the Georgia College Bobcats in three quick sets on Friday night, Nov. 15, at Christenberry Fieldhouse.
AU captured a 25-11, 25-13, 25-14 win over the Bobcats.
Freeland, the communication major from Riverton, Utah, playing in front of her father, James Freeland, led all players with 11 kills—most of them with her powerful right-side swing. She swung at a .250 clip.
“I think I played well,” Freeland said. “I had been in a rut recently. It was good to get back in a rhythm.”
Freeland, a transfer from Murray State, is second in the teams in kills this season with 185. Her father, a football coach in at Riverton High School, had missed senior night a few weeks back because his team had a game that night, but he was able to see his daughter have a stellar match on the last night of the Peach Belt Conference regular season.
The powerful Jaguar hitter had plenty of help from graduate student Madelyn Eden, who totaled nine kills and eight blocks for the Jaguars (4-4 in the Peach Belt Conference, 18-6 overall). The Newberry, Florida, native hit at an impressive .333 average.
Mikayla Kline, the sophomore from Lakeside High School in Evans, also was outstanding, getting Augusta off to a 7-0 lead to start the match. Kline finished with five kills, three aces and 12 digs. She also had the kill that finished the first set.
The Jaguars, ranked second in the Southeast this week in NCAA Division II play, were coming off a difficult loss at league regular-season champion Lander on Nov. 13, losing the final two sets 29-27 and 28-26.
But with Kline getting them off to a strong start Friday night, the Jags never looked back as they prepare for next week’s PBC Tournament, which AU has captured four straight seasons.
Senior Rylie Harris also shone against the Bobcats (0-8, 8-20) with a match-high 23 digs and three aces.
AU Coach Sharon Quarles knew the Jaguars had to put the tough loss at Lander behind them.
“We served, we passed, we hit, we blocked and we defended tonight,” said the veteran Augusta coach. “We came out with a mission. In the first set, we did not get down like we did against Lander.”
The Bearcats had won that first set Wednesday night by a 25-15 score.
“Tonight we were a whole different team,” Quarles said.
The Jaguars hit at a .183 clip for the night and held the Bobcats to a -.102 average. Augusta had 42 kills, compared to just 10 for Georgia College.
Marah Zenner had 19 assists for AU, while Janvier Buggs chipped in 15 for the winners. She surpassed the 2,000-assist milestone for her career in the loss at Lander. Buggs, the senior from Smyrna, Tennessee, started her career at Austin Peay before transferring to AU.
Jacklyn Simms had six kills for the Jaguars, most of those in the early going. Jada Suguturaga added six blocks for AU’s stout front line of blockers.
Now these two teams have to play again, at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 19, at Christenberry. If AU wins that night, then the Jaguars will play in the PBC Tournament semifinals at Lander on Friday, Nov. 22. The Bearcats, who won at Flagler 3-1 on Friday night, will be the No. 1 seed, the Saints No. 2 and USC Aiken No. 3.
David Bulla is a communication professor at Augusta University.
