CHAPEL HILL, NC – The Cleveland State volleyball team closed out play at the Carolina Classic Sunday, picking up a 3-0 victory over College of Charleston. With the win, the Vikings finish the opening weekend of 2024 with a 2-1 record.

Liberty Torres led the Viking offense with 14 kills on the day, while Nia Hall added nine.

Ella Mihacevich recorded 28 assists along with 11 digs and four blocks.

The Viking defense was led by Emma Walker with 16 digs, while Laken Voss added nine.

As a team, Cleveland State finished with 12.0 total blocks, including nine from Allana Appleby.

Cleveland State came out strong in the opening set, jumping out to a 10-1 lead following a trio of kills from Nia Hall, Liberty Torres and Allana Appleby. The Vikings then extended their lead to 13-5 midway through the frame, before closing out a commanding 25-11 first set victory on another Appleby kill.

During the second set the Vikings played from behind for the majority of the frame, until a 5-0 run tied the frame at 21-21, while a pair of Torres kills and a Charleston error gave the Vikings a 24-21 lead late in the set. Although Charleston was able to tie the frame once again at 24-24, Cleveland State took control over the final two points, coming away with the 26-24 victory on an Appleby kill and Charleston error to gain a 2-0 edge in the match.

After a back-and-forth start to the third set, the Vikings were able to notch four straight points midway through the frame, gaining a 19-15 edge on a Laken Voss kill. Cleveland State then held off a late Charleston run, regaining a three-point advantage on an Ella Mihacevich kill at 22-19. The Vikings then posted three of the next five points to close out the 25-21 set three victory on a pair of kills and a block from Torres and Appleby.

The Vikings will be back in action with a trio of matches this week, traveling to Akron (September 4) and hosting UTRGV (September 6) and Wyoming (September 7) as part of the Holiday Inn Express Cleveland Downtown CSU Invitational.