ROCK HILL, SC – The Winthrop volleyball team heads on the road this weekend for contests at Gardner-Webb and UNC Asheville as the Eagles look to maintain a top-four seeding in the conference.
Winthrop is coming off two solid performances at home last weekend with a four-set victory over Coastal Carolina and a sweep of Charleston Southern. The Eagles currently sit in fourth place in the conference with a 7-4 mark, only one game behind Coastal for third place.
Freshman Nikki Drost had two strong outings for the Eagles as she recorded her fourth double-double of the season on Friday against the Chanticleers with 13 kills and 14 digs. She followed that on Saturday with seven kills and 11 digs against Charleston Southern.
Winthrop will head to Boiling Springs, NC for a 7 p.m. game against the Bulldogs of Gardner-Webb on Friday evening. Gardner-Webb enters the weekend in fifth place, just one and a half games behind the Eagles. The Bulldogs have a 5-5 conference record and 12-16 record overall.
Winthrop defeated Gardner-Webb 3-1 earlier this season at the Winthrop Coliseum. The Bulldogs were led by Tyler Cockrell with 15 kills and she leads the team, averaging just shy of three kills per set this season. Anna Pashkova had a strong defensive effort, totaling 24 digs against the Eagles.
Saturday at 1 p.m. the Eagles will take on the Bulldogs of UNC Asheville inside the Justice Center. The Bulldogs are currently outside of the conference tournament picture with a 2-8 Big South mark which sits them in ninth place, a game behind of eighth-place Campbell.
Earlier this season the Bulldogs struggled to get past the Eagles block as Winthrop posted 10 team blocks en route to a 3-1 victory. Catherine Fischer led UNC Asheville with nine kills while four Eagles posted double-digit kills. Shelby Erickson and Christine Lakatos have led the Bulldogs offensively this year, averaging 2.51 and 2.48 kills per set respectively.
Winthrop closes out the regular season next Friday on the road at Presbyterian at 7 p.m. The Eagles will be looking to avenge an earlier season loss to the Blue Hose.
