INSTITUTE, W.Va. - In the first edition of the 2011-12 Kanawha Valley rivalry matchup the University of Charleston ran up against a stubborn opponent on the road at WV State in WVIAC volleyball action. The Yellow Jackets rallied in five sets to win the match 3-2, Wednesday evening.

Charleston (10-16 , 4-5) put a rowdy crowd in its seat with a 25-17 opening set win, which saw the Golden Eagles hammer 14 kills in dominating fashion. The second set did not continue the scorching pace for UC as continued pressure at the net cause seven WVSU errors, yet the Yellow Jackets rallied late in the set slipping away to a 25-19 victory.

Behind the hard-shots of Cara Hibbs-Leyva (San Diego, CA ) and Brenna Youlton (Ontario, Canada ) the Golden Eagles found their offensive groove in the third set jumping out to an immediate 8-1 advantage. WV State continued to chip away at the UC advantage until the home team finally broke through at 16-15. The Yellow Jackets attack was subdued in part by the strong presence at the net by block specialist Lora Goss (Birmingham, AL) who led Charleston to a tough 25-19 set win for the 2-1 match advantage. Goss led all players defensively on the evening with five block assists to go along with her 10 kills and four digs.

Despite the strong start and what looked to be a complete effort on the part of the University of Charleston the homestanding Yellow Jackets came out in set four with a renewed fire behind them. West Virginia State capitalized on eight Golden Eagle errors, while slamming 14 kills of their own in a 25-18 decision forcing a deciding fifth set.

The teams traded points in the final set running the score to 5-5, before the Yellow Jackets put together back-to-back points putting the pressure on UC to stay within reach. Under the pressure of the final set UC committed three consecutive errors allowing the hot-hitting Yellow Jackets to pull away for a match clinching 15-10 win.

Hibbs-Leyva paced the Golden Eagles with 15 kills and four digs, while Youlton recorded the highest hitting percentage at .370 while booking 13 kills and two block assists. Katie Williams (Gettysburg, PA ) directed the attack with 29 assists, along with two service aces.

UC heads home to prepare for its match against WVIAC opponent Seton Hill on Friday, Oct. 21 at 7:00 pm.