Duke Sweeps Dawgs Invitational

Saturday, September 5

Athens, Ga.

10:00 a.m.

Duke University

South Alabama

Volleyball Opens 2009 Season Friday Against Wisconsin

Duke Sweeps Dawgs Invitational

9/5/2009 6:15:00 PM | Volleyball

By: Duke Sports Information

ATHENS, Ga. - Led by a flawless offensive performance from sophomore Sophia Dunworth, the Duke volleyball team swept South Alabama 3-0 (25-17, 25-21, 25-17) and Tennessee State 3-0 (25-15, 25-14, 25-16) to win the Dawgs Invitational Saturday evening at the Ramsey Center.

Dunworth was a perfect 18-for-29 on the day and did not commit a single attack error in Duke's Saturday double header. A 6-1 outside hitter and middle blocker, Dunworth went 12-for-20 in the opening sweep of South Alabama and then turned in another errorless 6-for-9 performance in the 3-0 sweep over Tennessee State. Dunworth raised her hitting percentage to a team-leading .445 with Saturday's performance and now leads Duke with 60 kills, compared to just 11 attack errors.

Dunworth was not the only Blue Devil to find success at the Dawgs Invitational, as Duke topped the .400 mark in both of Saturday's wins. Against South Alabama, the Blue Devils hit .419 and then followed with a .402 clip against Tennessee State. Under the direction of sophomore setter Kellie Catanach, Duke's offense is one of the best in the ACC with a .325 hitting percentage and an average of 13.10 kills per set, both of which rank among the top three in the conference.

Duke has been just as dominant defensively, holding all but one opponent to a sub-.160 hitting percentage. Improved blocking has been key in the defensive effort, as Duke has averaged 2.62 blocks per set this season. Led by junior Becci Burling, Duke's middle blocking tandem of Burling, Amanda Robertson and Christiana Gray are among the best trios in the ACC. Gray broke out for seven blocks against South Alabama while Burling kept up her pace with seven more stops against Tennessee State. Robertson, meanwhile, extended her streak of six straight matches with at least one blocks.

Duke lost just one set at the Dawgs Invitational, which came in a 3-1 (25-19, 21-25, 25-25, 25-15) win over Georgia in the tournament opener on Friday. Duke now has three 3-0 sweeps on the season.

Duke dominated South Alabama from the first set allowing just seven of the Jaguars' first 30 attacks to hit the floor. Libero Claire Smalzer was there when South Alabama managed to hit past Duke's block, picking up five digs in the opening set. Though South Alabama rallied to tie the opening frame at 15-15, Duke rallied to close out the set in commanding fashion, closing with a 10-2 run that featured two final kills from Catanach.

Duke held another big lead in the second set against the Jaguars, but once again gave way to a late rally that tied the match at 21-21. All it took was a kill from Gray, however, to start another Duke rally that saw the Blue Devils score four straight points to close out the win. Senior Brittany Staffeil capped the victory with consecutive service aces to put Duke ahead 2-0.

Burling and freshman Megan Hendrickson took over in the third set and combined to go 7-for-10 in the match-clinching 25-17 win. Senior Christina Falcone stepped in at setter to close out the frame and finished with six assists while helping the Blue Devils hit .609 in the final set.

After rolling past South Alabama, Duke was just one win away from capturing the Dawgs Invitational crown with only Tennessee State standing in the way. Duke made quick work of the Tigers, thanks to a pair of 10-kill efforts from Burling and Staffeil and a .402 team hitting percentage.

Duke dominated the net, blocking eight attacks and holding Tennessee State to an even .000 clip. Burling had seven more stops, giving her a team-leading 32 on the season, while Smalzer collected 12 digs and allowed just 26 of 109 attacks to hit the floor.

Tennessee State finished in the negative in the first two sets and failed to break the .100 mark before the end of the match. Four of Duke's blocks - all from Burling - came in the first set, forcing the Tigers to commit 12 attack errors in the opening frame. The second set featured more of the same as Tennessee State made nine errors and hit into three blocks - all of which included Burling, again.

The Tigers finally hit over .000 in the third set, but could not keep up with a Duke attack that featured a six kills from Staffeil and five from Burling.

Duke will host Colorado State on Wednesday, Sept. 9, inside Cameron Indoor Stadium for the team's home opener, beginning at 7 p.m. The bout with the Rams will serve as the precursor to the 12^th annual Duke Invitational, which takes place Sept. 11-12 at Cameron Indoor Stadium and features Duke, No. 1 Penn State, Loyola and College of Charleston.

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