It's understandable that a first-year head coach might be a
bit nervous before a home opener, but that wasn't the case Tuesday for
Louisville native Amy Eckenfels, as she guided Campbellsville University women's
volleyball to a 3-0 win over Bryan College.
"Honestly, I felt at home. I felt more nervous for a first game on the road
than here," said Eckenfels, who graduated from CU in 2007. "I think because I
knew Billy (Gregory) and everyone here was supporting me it made it easy to
feel at home."
It also helped that her photo is etched on a NAIA Libero of the Year trophy in
the lobby of Powell Athletic Center and that both of her college coaches were
in attendance (Gregory as an assistant and former head coach Randy LeBleu as
event administrator.)
The nerves were present, though, for the Lady Tigers as they allowed Bryan to
push close in the opening set before pulling out a 27-25 win. CU went on to
close out the next two sets 25-18 and 25-21 to win the rematch of last year's
National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Tournament
semifinal.
Despite winning her first home game as head coach, Eckenfels was not entirely
pleased with the performance.
"I remember being nervous before a home opener as a
player, and the girls admitted after the game that they were nervous tonight,"
Eckenfels said. "But against a team like this, we need to come out banging and
being aggressive with our attacks. We're a better team when we play aggressive."
CU had 22 attacking errors in the match, including 11 in the first game. The
Tigers hit only .182 in the match, but improved from the first set to the last,
attacking successfully on 37 percent of their attempts.
Transfer Monica Chernichan of Canada led CU with a double-double, 12 kills and
17 digs, while returners Shannon Cahill and Samantha James had 11 and nine
kills, respectively. Caroline Martin had 38 assists, the fourth most of her
career in a three-set match, and added 14 digs defensively.
Audrey Sanders had a career-high 26 digs, the most by any
Lady Tiger this season. James also had double-figure digs with 11.
Campbellsville (4-1) returns to action Tuesday, Sept. 7 at 7 p.m. for its
Mid-South Conference opener against fellow MSC West Division foe University of
the Cumberlands.
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