ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- Armstrong Atlantic State swept Augusta State 3-0 Saturday afternoon in the semifinals of the 2012 Peach Belt Conference Volleyball Championships at Flagler Gym.
With the victory, the top-seeded Pirates improved to 31-5 and advanced to Sunday's 2:00 p.m., championship match. AASU will face the winner of the second semifinal between No. 2 Flagler and No. 6 Lander for the league's tournament title.
With the loss, the fifth-seeded Jaguars slipped to 19-15 on the season. The 19 wins marked the fifth-most wins in school history in the 28-year history of the program.
Armstrong's Brittany Wolf, a first-team, all-league selection, paced the Pirates with 11 kills against a single error. Amanda Jones logged 10 kills without an error and PBC Player of the Year Ashley Seal (26) combined with Megan Pando (14) for 40 assists. Abby Winsor pitched in 13 digs and Jessica Santaniello added nine. Pando chipped in five service aces as well.
ASU sophomore Alex Rohlfing led the Jags with eight kills and second-team, all-conference selection Jenna Keeler managed seven putdowns. Senior setter Krystin Wahlig netted 24 assists and sophomore libero Collette Richards posted a match-high 17 digs.
Tied at 11-all in the first set following a kill from the Jags' Paige Tuttle, the Pirates won four straight points. After the Jags inched within 18-16 on a Rohlfing kill, Armstrong pulled away for a 25-18 win in the set.
ASU quickly jumped in front 7-2 in the second set that featured 16 ties and eight lead changes. The Jags led by as much as 10-3 before the Pirates rattled off nine straight to grab a 12-10 lead.
The Jags scored three in a row for a 15-13 advantage and neither team led by more than two the rest of the set. A Rohlfing kill put ASU up 25-24 and with Richards on serve, the Pirates thwarted a pair of set points before a kill by Seal gave AASU the set win, 28-26.
Armstrong sprinted out an 11-2 lead in the third set and led 20-5 before closing out the match with a 25-14 win.
The Pirates, the league's regular-season champion, outhit ASU .291 to .115.
