Little Posts Career-High 26 Kills as Memphis Falls Short Against Cougars

Sunday, August 30

Nashville, Tenn.

1 p.m.

University of Memphis

0-3,0-0American

College of Charleston

1-2,0-0CAA

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Memphis	25	23	26	23	8	2
Col. of Charleston	19	25	24	25	15	3

Photo by: Logan Orman

Little Posts Career-High 26 Kills as Memphis Falls Short Against Cougars

Aug 30, 2026 | Volleyball

Box Score

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Memphis volleyball team (0-3) fell to College of Charleston Cougars (1-2) in five-sets inside Allen Arena on Sunday afternoon.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams traded points early before Caitlyn Little sparked a 4-0 run, followed by a 3-0 run and then another 4-0 run to give the Tigers a 21-15 advantage in the opening frame. The Cougars responded with a solo block from Julie Nzambele and kills from Makena Parthen and Caroline Noonan to close the gap. Memphis capitalized on several attack errors alongside a block from Dawn Moore and Kaylee Parker to secure the first set, 25-19.

The second set began much like the first, but Charleston gained momentum off Memphis service and attack errors to take a 17-14 lead. Arianna Mongare answered with a solo block alongside a kill from Zaniah Hoskins to help the Tigers regain ground. Both teams traded kills down the stretch, but the Cougars pulled away to tie the match with a 25-23 victory.

Memphis came out strong in the third set, taking a 6-3 lead behind kills from Little, Parker and Hoskins, as well as a service ace from Little. The Tigers went on a 4-0 run to build a buffer before Charleston answered with a 6-0 burst to take an 11-10 advantage. The Cougars extended their lead to 17-12, but Little, Moore, Mongare and Lily Hamilton delivered late kills to push Memphis ahead for a 26-24 set win.

Charleston controlled the opening stretch of the fourth frame with a 12-3 run. Hoskins led a Memphis rally, helping the Tigers chip away at the deficit with consecutive scoring runs to trim Charleston's lead to 14-11. The teams went point-for-point late until key kills from Julia Gnida and Gabby Tuianna sealed the set for the Cougars, 25-23.

The Cougars dominated the start of the tiebreaking fifth set, taking the first four points off two kills from Gnida and two aces from Jumana Martin. Memphis generated offense through kills from Little, Parker, Moore, Mongare and Hoskins, but the rally fell short as Charleston secured the final points to take the set 15-8 and win the match.

NOTABLES

Caitlyn Little led the Tigers with a career-high of 26 kills, 18 digs and 31.5 points.
- This is Little's fourth 20-plus career kill performance.
- The senior also tied her career-high of service aces at four.
- This marks the second double-double this season for Little.
- Little becomes the first player this season to record 25 plus kills.
- Little is the first Tiger to record 25-plus kills in a match since Amanda Hardt posted 25 against Lamar on Sept. 12, 2025
Zaniah Hoskins followed with 12 kills
Sydney Marshall recorded a career-high of 40 assists.
- Marshall is the first Tiger to record 40 assists since Nov. 16 when Maddy Bach put up 42 assists against East Carolina in 2025.
Abigail Schlueter and Taylor Hampton reached double-figure digs with 22 and 14, respectively.
Dawn Moore recorded nine kills along with a block and a dig.
Arianna Mongare led Memphis with three blocks, including two solo blocks.
The 26-24 victory in the third set marked the first time Memphis won an extended set since Sept. 26, 2025, at Tulane.

UP NEXT
Memphis travels to Lafayette, La., for the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic. The Tigers open tournament play against Southeastern Louisiana on Friday, Sept. 4 at 2 p.m. before facing host team Louisiana on Saturday at 1 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For complete information on Memphis Tigers Volleyball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.