In the Appalachian State Invitational on Sept. 20 and 21, the Davidson Women’s Volleyball team posted a 3-1 win against Duke University and a 1-3 loss against Appalachian State University. Led by all-tournament honors recipients Jordan Hummel ’26, and Kinsey Smith ’28, the ‘Cats come out of the weekend ready to dominate in the Atlantic-10 (A10). 

The ‘Cats fell in the first set to Duke, then took three consecutive sets, winning 3-1. Emma Slusser ’26 spoke on the feeling of defeating a ‘big-name’ school like Duke: “We knew that we could beat them… They have the big name, the big players on the other side, but the name or size of the school, or the amount of money they have has never been an intimidating factor for us… We were just better than them.”

After the loss against Appalachian State, the ‘Cats still remain confident in the upcoming matches. Senior Anna Withee highlighted the importance of the team’s consistency in the face of a loss, including Elena Garcia-Guerrios ’27 double-double with 26 kills (a career high) and 15 digs. “Elena has been key for us in coming from behind and building our energy… And having other players who can consistently execute is nice to have to contribute–not just one person.” Withee also contributed to the team’s success at the invitational, putting up 14 kills in the win against Duke.

Before travelling to Appalachian State, Head Coach Chris Willis gave an outlook on the team’s goals for the weekend: “I want to see us improve, get better every day, and learn from experience… This weekend, for us, is about development and refining what we want to do going into conference.” The ‘Cats not only improved through experience on the court, but also displayed the evidence in their two matchups.  

Slusser remarked on the takeaways from the Appalachian State loss, echoing Coach Willis’ outlook: “Even though it was a loss, we know how well we played, and with that same intensity, mindset, and belief that we can win, I think we have a great chance at doing well in conference play.”