The Charlotte 49ers volleyball team wrapped up their spring season recently, splitting a match with Central Florida at the North Carolina Tournament. The split closed out a successful spring that included wins over Conference USA rival East Carolina and ACC foe Duke.

"I am very pleased with how the team performed this spring," head coach Lisa Marston said. "We played some tough competition and had success against them. We were preparing for an extremely competitive fall schedule and the spring competition helped us to do just that."

Charlotte kicked off their spring, March 22, with a tournament at Duke. After earning a split versus the Blue Devils in their first match, the team turned its attention to North Carolina. The Niners played well, but lost a hard fought match to the Tar Heels. The 49ers' final opponent of the day was Alabama. Both teams played tough with each earning a split for their efforts.

The Niners took advantage of familiar surroundings in their second tourney. Playing at home as the host, Charlotte opened play with a victory over C-USA and in-state rival East Carolina. Next, the team faced Radford. This match was split. The third opponent of the day was against South Carolina. The team battled hard, but was defeated by the Gamecocks. Lastly, the 49ers met Wake Forest. The team put forth an aggressive effort, which resulted in a split match with the Deacons.

Charlotte enjoyed its best outing of the spring in the third tournament, which was held at South Carolina. Abbey Szlanfucht proved unstoppable with her attacks from the outside and behind the attack line. Her aggressive play helped the 49ers split a match against North Carolina. The Niners continued on to avenge a previous loss to South Carolina. Taking on the tournament host in front of a large crowd, the team fought a fierce battle to record a split. Later in the day, the team beat Duke, and lost their only match of the day to Georgia.

"Abbey had an incredible spring," Marston said. "She made a strong commitment to getting stronger and as a result was unstoppable in most matches. She will be a real force for us on the outside this fall."

The Niners ended their 2003 spring season with a return trip to the Triangle area for a tournament at North Carolina. The team began with a split against Duke. Next, the 49ers lost a close match to Maryland. Later in the day, the team suffered a loss to the Tar Heels. The last match of the day found the Niners across the net from Central Florida. The team's coordinated play enabled them to earn a split.