East Carolina Takes Care Of Savannah State In Three

Sunday, September 4

Savannah, GA.

1:00 p.m.

East Carolina University

4-0

Savannah State

0-8

East Carolina

Savannah State

September 04, 2016 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

SAVANNAH, Ga. – Buoyed by an outstanding offensive performance by senior outside hitter I'Tiana Taylor, the East Carolina volleyball team notched a 3-0 (25-12, 25-16, 25-19) road victory over Savannah State Sunday afternoon inside Willcox-Wiley Gym.

Torbett's Take: "It is always nice to win on the road. We were able to get everyone who was available into the match so they could earn some game experience. We will continue working on playing at a high level throughout every match to ensure we reach our goals."

Taylor racked up a career-high 13 kills and hit .750 – tying for the second-highest single-match hitting percentage in program history. She made just one error in 16 attempts and also added a solo block to her output. Junior outside Ashton Mares produced eight kills and two aces. Dominic Ingraham paced the Tigers with eight kills and a .533 hitting mark.

As a team, ECU (4-0) compiled a .403 hitting percentage on the strength of 36 kills on 67 swings and nine errors. Conversely, Savannah State (0-8) fired at a .024 clip after hitting .000 in the first two frames and .083 in the final stanza. The Pirates notched four total blocks while the Tigers came up empty in that category.

Set One: East Carolina was quick out of the gates, scoring nine of the first 12 points of the match to take control early. Following a kill by senior middle hitter Ashley McRae, the Tigers were forced to call timeout with the Pirates in the lead by a 14-5 margin. The cushion ballooned to 11 points at 16-5 as the set rolled on and SSU would only get as close as eight the rest of the way.

Set Two: The Tigers came out the aggressors in the second frame, building a 12-8 edge after a Pirate ball-handling error. Unfazed, ECU ripped off six consecutive points on the serve of junior middle Natalie Montini to wrest control away from the home side. Savannah State kept it close for a while, trailing by just two at 17-15, but a 6-0 East Carolina run capped by a service ace by freshman libero Brandee Markwith put the frame out of reach.

Set Three: The Pirates gave the Tigers no chance to get back into the match in the third set, using the serve of junior defensive specialist Megan Williams to jump out to a 5-0 lead. Savannah State took a timeout after a Taylor kill made the score 11-4 and ECU emptied its bench from there – eventually closing out the set and match by the six-point margin.

Bits and Pieces: East Carolina improved to 2-0 in road matches while Savannah State lost its home opener … The Pirates are 4-0 for the third-straight year … ECU upped its advantage to 4-0 in the series with Savannah State and swept the Tigers for the second-straight season … Head coach Julie Torbett needs just 18 victories to reach 400 for her career … East Carolina and USF are the remaining two American Athletic Conference teams that have not suffered a loss in 2016 … Three of ECU's four freshman made their collegiate debuts in the match.

Up Next: The Pirates return to the court Tuesday evening, making the short trip over to Greensboro for a non-conference contest against North Carolina A&T. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.