CHARLESTON, W, Va. – The Golden Eagles played their second game of the weekend at home this afternoon as they looked to keep the momentum rolling after winning their last three matches. They were not able to keep the streak going though, as they fell in three sets.
Just The Basics
Score: Fairmont 3 Charleston 0
Location: Charleston, W, Va. – Wehrle Innovation Center
Team Records: Charleston (8-14, 3-3 MEC) Fairmont State (8-11, 1-5 MEC)
How It Happened
Charleston came out aggressive early on in the first set attacking with some authority. Fairmont was not able to get the ball on the ground early as a result of some great defensive efforts from seniors Sydney Burt and Kelsey Matusic. Charleston was able to get an early lead but allowed the Falcons to hang around as there were eight tie scores in the set. Charleston was able to put up 10 kills, eight of them coming from sophomore Brianna Washburn. They also posted a .139 hitting percentage. Fairmont was able to get some key blocks down the stretch to help them pull ahead of the Golden Eagles managing to put up four of them in the set. Their blocking game is what allowed them to shut down UC to close out the set by a score of 25-22.
It was another closely contested set to follow the first. Charleston had gained an early lead but allowed Fairmont to stick around as Fairmont seemed to be more aggressive on their attacks allowing them to come back and take the lead 10-9. It was very back and forth in the middle of the set as there were eight ties and three lead changes. The set was tied late as Fairmont was able to come back and tie it at 20-20. Fairmont was able to close out the game by scoring multiple points in a row to make put the set away 25-22. Charleston had 13 kills and a .357 hitting percentage while Fairmont had 11 kills and a .296 hitting percentage. Despite the numbers, Fairmont pulled through to take the set.
Charleston could not come back in the third set. They recorded 11 kills and a .143 hitting percentage while Fairmont had 15 kills and a .462 hitting percentage along with five blocks in the set. This proved to be too much for the Golden Eagles as they dropped the set 25-19.
Notable Performances
Sophomore Brianna Washburn had eight kills, freshman Jaxin Melby had eight kills, sophomore Erin Thomas had 26 assist and 10 digs and senior Kelsey Matusic had 10 digs.
Up Next
The Golden Eagles will be back in action this Tuesday, Oct. 22 with an evening match on the road against West Liberty.
