The No. 4-ranked Emory volleyball team closed out its opening weekend of action with a split of two matches on the final day of the Emory Classic.  The Eagles topped St. Mary's College by a 3-0 count (25-13, 25-19, 25-12) before seeing Saint Benedict  register a 3-2 decision (25-20, 17-25, 23-25, 25-23, 15-6) in the final match of the two-day event.  Emory now stands 3-1.

Emory hit .380 (47-9—100) vs. Saint Mary's compared to the Belles' effort of .037 (23-19—109).  Sophomore outside Karissa Dzurik led all players with 14 kills and hit .462 (14-2—26), while also adding six digs and two block assists. Senior Sarah Maher and freshman Morgan McKnight each contributed nine kills, with Maher hitting .571 (9-1—14) and McKnight .529 (9-0—17). Freshman Sarah Porter doled out 25 assists and kept St. Mary's off balance with five service aces.  Freshman Elyse Thompson came through with a match-high 19 digs and helped Emory to a 59-41 match edge in that category.

Emory ran into a St. Benedict squad that turned in a stout defensive effort, holding the Eagles to a .164 hitting (59-29-183) performance while countering an effort of .249 (60-18—169). Dzurik led the Eagles with 15 terminations while Maher and senior Jessica Holler each chipped in 10 kills. The Blazers enjoyed a slim 81-79 advantage in digs, with Thompson leading Emory with 20, and recorded eight total blocks to Emory's six.

The Eagles return to action next Friday and Saturday (Sept. 9-10) when it heads to the Western part of the country to play in the Cal Lu Fornia Invitational.