Volleyball - NSU Completes Perfect Opening Weekend with pair of Sweeps

Gabrielle Spankus records 1,000th career assist

Next Match:

vs. Belmont Abbey College

9/13/2024 | 11:00 A.M.

ASHLAND, Ohio – The Nova Southeastern Sharks Volleyball team wrapped up a perfect opening weekend at the Ashland Invitational, defeating both West Liberty and D’Youville 3-0, and started the 2024 campaign 4-0. Elizabeth Price continued her torrid pace to begin the season, tallying a match-high 12 kills and added 11 digs against West Liberty, while Madelyn Hooper combined to record 12 total blocks across both matches on Saturday, including a career-best of 10 in the victory over D’Youville.

Additionally, Gabrielle Spankus recorded the 1,000^th assist of her collegiate career in the win over WLU.

Early in the opening set, Olivia Aniol sparked a 5-0 rally for NSU which also featured kills from Elizabeth Price, and Gabrielle Spankus, giving the Sharks a 9-4 advantage.
Nova Southeastern continued the momentum, piling on for a 10-2 run over West Liberty, extending the lead to 19-6 and taking full control of the first set.
The lengthy run included three consecutive points from Aniol and kills from Kate Mihacevich as well as Madelyn Hooper.
Price put a stamp on the dominant set, sealing the 25-14 opening frame victory for NSU.
After trailing 6-9 in the second set, NSU rallied to take a 15-14 lead over WLU courtesy of three consecutive points from Price.
Gabrielle Spankus bookended a 5-0 run for NSU, starting the rally with a kill and closing it with a service ace, giving the Sharks a 21-17 lead.
Price stepped up once again, closing out the second set with a kill, giving Nova Southeastern the 25-23 second set win and putting NSU ahead 2-0 in the match.
The Sharks started the third set on a 5-0 rally, as Stockman, Price and Mihacevich each tallied points during the run.
NSU continued to roll, extending the advantage to 15-5 over West Liberty.
Hooper sparked a final run for the Sharks and was helped by back-to-back service aces from Spankus, giving NSU a 24-6 lead over West Liberty.
The Sharks closed out the sweep, defeating West Liberty 25-7 in the third set.

Elizabeth Price: 12 kills, 0.360 hitting percentage, 11 digs
Olivia Aniol: 10 kills, 0.588 hitting percentage, two blocks
Gabrielle Spankus: 27 assists (1,000th of collegiate career)

Nova Southeastern got off to a quick start in the match against D’Youville, as Stockman began the match with 3-of-7 points for NSU.
Stockman and Aniol each tallied kills, putting the Sharks ahead 11-4 over the Saints.
A 6-1 run for Nova Southeastern put the score at 17-6 in the first set, as Nova Southeastern continued to pile on to the lead.
Spankus closed out the set with a kill, giving the Sharks a 25-18 opening frame victory.
Trailing 4-6 in the second set, the Sharks rallied for a 4-0 run as Mihacevich tallied back-to-back kills.
Nova Southeastern and the Saints battled back-and-forth for much of the second set, but NSU closed the frame on a 8-1 run, closing the frame with a kill from Mihacevich, as the Sharks took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-18 set win.
NSU controlled the entirety of the third and final set, completing the sweep and a 4-0 start to the season with a 25-13 third set win against D’Youville.

Kate Mihacevich: 10 kills, 0.381 hitting percentage, three total blocks
Taylor Stockman: 10 kills, 0.500 hitting percentage, three total blocks
Madelyn Hooper: 10 total blocks (career-high)
Gabrielle Spankus: 31 assists

Head Coach Kacie Ehinger – “Excited for a great start to the season. We played some high level volleyball. Our passers did an excellent job of keeping us in system all weekend and Gabrielle Spankus was able to run a balance efficient offense because of that! Excited to get back to Florida 4-0 and prepare for our next matches.”

Gabrielle Spankus – “I couldn’t of reached this milestone without my amazing teammates. They push me everyday to become a better athlete and teammate. I’m excited for the rest of the season and the potential we have in store.”

Madelyn Hooper – “Any time I get out here with my teammates I’m trying to make a difference any way I can. Today, we got a really good block going and it made a big difference, helping us close out the second set and carried a lot of momentum into the third. It felt great to contribute all around today and it was a big win for us as a team.”

The Sharks return to the Sunshine State and will compete in the Flagler Invitational beginning on Friday, September 13^th. NSU will play a pair of matches, first taking on Belmont Abbey at 11 a.m. and then match-up against Flagler at 7 p.m. To stay up-to-date on Sharks Volleyball, be sure to follow on Instagram at NSU_VBall and X at NSU_VB.