By: Holly Weber, TTU Sports Information Coordinator

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.—It was a battle in Knoxville. Day three of the Tennessee Volleyball Invitational was a tough one for the Tennessee Tech volleyball team (0-6, 0-0 OVC) as they took on the UNC-Greensboro Spartans (4-2) on Saturday. The Spartans edged the Golden Eagles, 3-2, in a close battle while taking winning set scores of 25-15, 23-25, 19-25, 25-18, and 15-13.

"We had a consistent game," said Golden Eagle Sharon Anderson. "That was our focus that we tried for all weekend and we finally accomplished it. It came down to two points at the end, but we are going to keep battling."

Back-to-back kills from Cody Dodd and Shaneice James opened first set play for Tech who took the 4-2 lead before UNCG game back to tie the score at 4-4. From there, the Spartans went on a 6-1 run to pull ahead of the Golden Eagles 10-5. Kills from Kellie Williams and Dodd brought Tech back within two, 11-9, of UNCG, however, the Spartans recovered and extended their lead by seven points, 17-10, over the Golden Eagles. UNCG continued to capitalize on their lead and took a first set victory 25-15.

Tech took the early 6-3 lead in the second set. The Golden Eagles continued to play tough and pulled ahead of the Spartans, 11-6. UNCG came within two points, 12-10, of Tech, however, the Golden Eagles went on a 5-2 run and extended their lead to 17-12.  From there, Tech minimized errors and maintained a strong offense to pull ahead 22-16. UNCG battled back pulling within one point, 24-23, but the Golden Eagles held on to win the second set 25-23.

It was a tight third set. UNCG opened with a 7-4 lead until Tech went on a spree of kills and took an 8-7 lead due to a kill from James followed by three-in-a-row from Dodd. The Golden Eagles took control of the set and pulled ahead 13-9, however, the Spartans fought back and tied the score at 14-14. The two teams remained in close proximity of each other until Tech went on a 7-3 run and pulled ahead of UNCG 21-17, before sealing a third set triumph 25-19.

The Spartans came out strong in the fourth set, taking an 8-3 lead over the Golden Eagles. Kills from Dodd and Williams helped Tech pull within three, 10-7, of UNCG, however, the Spartans continued to extend their lead to 15-11. UNCG went on a 6-2 run to pull ahead 21-13, and then cruised to a fourth set victory 25-18.

Kills from Williams, James, and Shealene Little helped Tech take the early 5-1 lead in the fifth set. The Golden Eagles then extended their lead to 8-3 with kills from Dodd. UNCG battled to come within two points of Tech at 8-6, and then continued to tie the score at 9-9. From there, the two teams battled for control until the Spartans took a slight lead at 13-11 causing the Golden Eagles to take a time out. A kill from Dodd brought Tech back within one, 13-12, but UNCG edged out the win 15-13.

Dodd led the Golden Eagles with 25 kills, three blocks and a .305 hitting percentage. Anderson collected 38 assists and 12 digs in the match, while teammates Wade gathered 26 digs and James totaled six blocks. Ashley Muench led the Spartans with 19 kills and a .319 hitting percentage.

"We will be playing some good teams next weekend," continued Anderson. "We want to play the same as we did today with a lot of high energy and good attitude and not get frazzled. Hopefully, we can keep moving up from here."

Tech will travel to Memphis, Tenn. on Fri.-Sat., Sept. 11-12, for the Memphis Invitational. There, they will face opponents of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Little Rock, host Memphis, and Auburn.