Charleston, W. Va. – After playing their last three games at home, the Wheeling University Volleyball team (14-7, 7-1) hit the road Tuesday night for just the second time in October. They ended up falling to The University of Charleston in a tight match 3-1 in Charleston, West Virginia. Each of the final two sets went to a win-by-two scenario, but the Cardinals were unable to over the Golden Eagles in either set as they dropped their first conference match or the season.

In the first set of the night, Charleston would score the first point, but the two teams battled throughout the night. A Mady Winters kill at the sets halfway point brought it to an 11-11 set, and three points later, the Cardinals would go on a 3-0 run to take a 14-12 lead. A Riley Kindall kill would spark a 4-0 run a few points later as the Cardinals pulled out in front with a 20-15 lead in the later portion of the set. They held that same lead until it was set point for the Cardinals at 24-18 before the Golden Eagles began to battle back. They got as close as 24-21, before an attack error won the set for the Cardinals and gave them a 1-0 lead in the match. The Cardinals were 13-1 entering play after winning the first set and looked to use that to their advantage.

However, the Golden Eagles would come out fast and furious in the second set, going out to a 12-3 lead early on. Kindall would start a 3-1 run with two kills, but it wasn't enough as the Golden Eagles went on to win the set 25-11. The set was tied at 1-1as the two teams headed into a crucial third set. The Cardinals took control early in set three, with a 4-2 lead, but the Golden Eagles would fight back to tie the set at 5-5. That same back and forth persisted throughout the third set and things were tied up at 22-22 late. Charleston would take a 23-23 lead before Wheeling grabbed the set point thanks to kills from Karly Niesen and Allonda Watkins. The Golden Eagles tied things up at 24-24 and took it to a win-by-two scenario.

Tylah Yeomans had the first kill of the extra points, but the Golden Eagles came back with the next three points to win the set 27-25. With the Cardinals down 2-1 in the match, they headed into set four looking to force a fifth set. The Golden Eagles would hold the lead for majority of the fourth set and brought up set point at 24-22. The Cardinals would battle back thanks to a service aces and an attack error that forced another win-by-two scenario. Charleston would score the first point in the extra points, but Watkins would tie the set at 25-25. However, a kill and an attack error would end the set as Charleston walked away with a 27-25 win and won the match 3-1. It was the Cardinals first conference loss of the season as they fall to 7-1 in MEC play.

The Cardinals offense was led by a pair of strong performances from Allonda Watkins and Tylah Yeomans. Each player finished with 13 kills each and Riley Kindall added 12 kills in the loss. Karly Niesen added 53 assists as the Cardinals combined to hit .247 in the match. Chylyn Pate led the defense with 18 digs and Yeomans added another strong defensive day with 10 Digs. The Cardinals will now look to bounce back as they return home this weekend for their fourth home game in their last five contests.

The Wheeling University Volleyball team returns to action on Friday, October 14th, when they host West Virginia State at 7 PM.