Box Score VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State volleyball team (12-18, 11-9 Gulf South Conference) fell in the opening round of the GSC Tournament tonight at the Complex to Christian Brothers (15-16, 9-10 GSC) in three sets (22-25, 26-28, 17-25). The Lady Bucs will advance to Pensacola to take on UAH, while the Blazers 2025 season has ended.
The first set saw CBU jump out to a 9-6 lead, but the Blazers rattled off three-straight to knot the set at nine highlighted by a kill and ace from senior Ava Young and freshman Ava Keuntjes. The Lady Bucs proceeded to push the lead back out with a 4-0 run, but Blazer freshman Madison Kilmer ended the spurt with a kill. The Blazers kept chipping away and pulled within 16-15 on a kill from senior Sabrina Oncins. A kill from graduate Macy Brown and an attack error on CBU knotted the set at 17 for the third tie of the set. Three-straight kills from CBU's Addison Waggoner gave the visitors a 20-17 lead and a timeout by the Blazers.
Out of the timeout, VSU rattled off two quick points pulling within 20-19 and CBU needed a stoppage. Kilmer recorded her third kill of the set for a 20-20 score, but Waggoner had her seventh kill and Ella Schumacher tallied her fifth for a 22-20 lead for CBU. The Lady Bucs had set put at 24-22 and closed out the set with a kill from Schumacher for a 25-22 opening set victory.
For the first set, VSU hit .115 with 12 kills in 52 swings, while CBU hit .222 with 18 kills in 54 attempts. Waggoner finished with seven kills, while Schumacher had six. Kilmer had four kills in the opening set for the Blazers.
CBU held the lead for the early going in the second set and, but the Blazers kept within striking distance each time the Lady Bucs would try to stretch the lead to more than three. VSU tied the set at 10-10 on a miscue by CBU and finally took the lead in a kill from Kilmer for an 11-10 advantage for just the third lead of the match as CBU needed a timeout. The teams traded points and the set was tied at 14 for the eighth tie of the frame.
The Blazers kept the momentum and capitalized on a miscue by CBU and a kill from sophomore Avery Mullins for a 17-15 lead marking the largest lead of the match for the Blazers and a timeout by the Lady Bucs. VSU kept the pressure on and stretched the run to 5-0 for a 20-15 lead, before CBU ended the run with a kill from Elisabeth Edwards.
CBU would cut the deficit to three at 21-18 on an ace from Sophia Nowacki. Mullins had a nice pass from Oncins for a kill and a 23-19 lead, but the Lady Bucs quickly responded and tied the set at 23 for the tenth tie of the set, before Schumacher had her tenth kill of the match and set point at 24-23. VSU answered with a kill from Brown for the 11th tie of the set, staving off set point and then used a miscue from the Lady Bucs for a 25-24 lead. VSU would take a 26-25 lead on a kill from Oncins, but CBU had the answer for a 26-26 set. The Lady Bucs used a kill and an error on the Blazers for the 28-26 win.
Both teams improved their hitting in the second set as the Lady Bucs hit .323 with 23 kills in 62 swings, while VSU hit .234 highlighted by 17 kills on 64 attempts.
VSU took the lead early in the third set for a 5-2 advantage, but CBU responded and scored seven of the next nine points for a 9-7 lead with a timeout by the Blazers. CBU kept the pressure on and pushed the lead to five at 13-8 and stretched the run to 11-3 since the early lead by the Blazers. Out of a timeout, the Blazers kept fighting and trimmed the deficit to 14-11 with kills from Brown, Oncins and Kilmer as CBU needed a breather. Out of the CBU stoppage, VSU scored two more points pulling within 14-13 and a 5-1 run. From there, CBU used a 9-3 run for a 23-16 lead. The Lady Bucs won the third set for the match, 25-17.
Looking Forward
The Valdosta State volleyball team opened the year with a highly competitive non-conference schedule and bounced back with a quality effort in GSC play. The team saw a breakout year from 5x GSC Defensive Player of the Week junior Eimy Negron Domenech. It also saw career years from several potential returners including junior Asia Montagnani, sophomore Avery Mullins, and freshman Ava Keuntjes. The team will bid farewell to their six seniors: Macy Brown, Ashton Middleton, Ava Young, Kennedy Hairston, Sabrina Oncins, and Katie Callenberger as they shift their focus to building for 2026.
Check the volleyball schedule page on vstateblazers.com for links to live stats and streaming for Tuesday's match and more information on the Gulf South Conference Tournament.
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