Concord Drops MEC Road Contest to Charleston

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The Concord University volleyball team fell 3-0 to Charleston Friday afternoon in a Mountain East Conference game played inside the Wehrle Center.
 
With the loss, CU falls to 14-15 overall and 7-6 against MEC competition while UC improves to 23-6 and 11-2 in the conference. The final set scores were 13-25, 23-25, and 26-28.
 
Set 1
After a fast start by the Golden Eagles, sophomore middle hitter Jasmine Anderson logged the first kill for CU to make the score 5-2. Freshman right side Maddie Stull got in the scoring column, hitting for a kill as CU trailed by eight midway through the frame. Sophomore outside hitter Meg Williams swung for a pair of kills as the set concluded and Charleston took a 1-0 lead.  
 
Set 2
Consecutive kills from senior middle hitter Kyndra Pilant got the Mountain Lions going in set two as they trailed by one, 5-4. Then, with UC leading 8-6, Concord headed a 5-0 run to take a three-point lead. Williams smashed two kills during the run, sophomore right side Natalie Brown also contributed a kill, and sophomore setter Paige Richmond served an ace. Pilant added back-to-back kills to hold off an impending UC run to give CU the lead back, 15-13. Williams hit for another kill and added a solo block to hold a one-point advantage, 20-19. However, the Golden Eagles took four of the last six points in the game to take a 2-0 lead.
 
Set 3
Brown and Pilant got the Maroon and Gray on the board to take a 3-1 lead. With Charleston leading 11-8, Brown hit for two more kills paired with a UC attack error to knot the frame, 11-11. Charleston regained the lead 16-12, but Pilant and Stull led a four-point swing to tie the match again. Both teams traded points down the stretch and each came within one point of victory, but it was the Golden Eagles that prevailed 28-26.
 
Match Stats
Pilant was the only Mountain Lion with double-digit kills (10) and also hit .381 in the game. Williams (nine) and Brown (six) also chipped in on the offensive end. Richmond finished with 19 assists and one ace while Rylee Wise added 10 assists. Sophomore defensive specialist Allie Davis tallied 14 digs.
 
The Mountain Lions head to Elkins, W.Va. to meet Davis & Elkins Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.