CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- Covenant volleyball started their 2026 campaign with a pair of exhibition matches against Lee and Carson-Newman on Saturday, with the Scots putting forth a good showing in both matches.

MATCH ONE: Lee 3, Covenant 2

Despite a spirited effort, a balanced attack from the Flames was too much for the Scots, as they fell in a close match, 3-2. 

Junior Avery Maiden led the way with 11 kills, while Cali Sandhoff posted a near triple-double with nine kills, 21 assists, and nine digs.

On the defensive end, Sarah Jennings (24) paced the team in digs, while Aubrianna Gerdes (13) and Henley Gentry (10) added double-digit dig efforts. Cadie Weldon and Marj Stark contributed two blocks each as well.

Following a 25-10 set one loss, Covenant rallied for 25-20 and 25-22 wins in sets two and three to take a 2-1 set advantage. However, Lee outpaced the Scots 40-19 the rest of the way to take the win. 

Scarlett Martz (5), Gerdes (5), Sparrow Sethman (3), Kayley Shanfelt (2), Gabby Sumrall (1), and Kennedy Barber (1), contributed kills to aid the offense, while Evy Hammer put up 10 assists. 

MATCH TWO: Carson-Newman 3, Covenant 0

In their second match of the day, Covenant could not keep pace with the Eagles, ultimately being defeated in a 3-0 sweep.

Avery Maiden led the attack again with seven kills and a .353 hitting percentage, while Cali Sandhoff posted a team-best 10 assists. Defensively, Henley Gentry led in digs with seven, while Sandhoff added five and Hailey Landrum three. 

Similarly to the first match, Carson-Newman pulled away in set one for a 25-13 win, only to see the Scots battle back in set two. This time, though, the rally fell short as the Eagles took a 25-23 win in the second set and then a 25-16 win in the third.

Addison Hill, Kayley Shanfelt, AnaClara Maik, Delaney Stirm, and Scarlett Martz each recorded kills to contribute to the offensive output, while Chloe Finn added four assists and four consecutive service aces. Lauren Niemeyer had a pair of digs on the defensive end to round out the lineup.

UP NEXT

The Scots will host Sewanee on Tuesday, September 1, for their first regular season match.

CONNECT WITH THE SCOTS

Be sure to follow the Scots all season long on athletics.covenant.edu and on social media at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for up-to-date scores, news and other information.