BUIES CREEK, N.C. — Campbell volleyball senior Allena Heath became just the 11th player in program history to surpass 1,000 career kills, as the Fighting Camels cruised past South Carolina State in straight sets, 3-0 (25-20, 25-9, 25-18), Saturday night inside Gore Arena.
Heath, a native of Colleyville, Texas, entered the match with 991 kills and recorded a season-high 13 kills to reach 1,000 kills for her career.
"Allena has brought a high level of consistency to our program for the past four years," head coach Greg Goral said. "As one of our starting outsides from her freshman year to a first team all-conference selection as a sophomore and then through last year when she battled through significant injuries, she's always been there for us and continues to be someone we can rely on night in and night out. She's got a great mentality, and we're going to try and win this championship for her."
The win secured Campbell's fifth consecutive sweep and earned the Fighting Camels the Comfort Inn Fuquay Invitational Championship. Heath, Sarah Colla and Emily Mitter were named to the all-tournament team with Colla receiving MVP honors.
Colla finished the weekend with 34 kills (3.78 per set) while committing just nine errors across 76 attacks for a .329 hitting percentage; she also logged 22 digs (2.44 per set). Heath recorded 25 kills across Campbell's three matches for a 2.78 kills-per-set average. Mitter paced the offense all weekend, dishing out 45 assists (5.00 per set) while also racking up 27 digs (3.00 per set).
"It was a great weekend. We stayed composed and focused throughout all three matches," Goral said. "There was a definite concentration on executing at a high level and defending with everything that we had. That allowed us to keep the momentum on our side. I couldn't be happier for how we've grown from the first week until now."
Colla recorded 11 kills against the Bulldogs, good for her team-high eighth match with double-digit kills. Hailey Wilson logged a season-high seven kills.
Mitter and Madee Miner evenly split the assists distribution, both recording 15 assists in the win. Mitter also put down a match-high three service aces and had five digs.Defensively, Grace Kane led with 16 digs while three Fighting Camels – Colla, Wilson and Hannah Schneggenburger – logged two block assists each.
The Fighting Camels head west next weekend to play in the Colorado Classic with matches scheduled against UMBC, Oakland and host Colorado. Campbell plays its first match Friday, Sept. 20 against UMBC at 6 p.m. (4 p.m. MST).
