Box Score CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The University of Charleston Women's Volleyball team won their first match of the season and avenged defeat from their season opener, defeating the Bobcats from West Virginia Wesleyan in straight sets on Tuesday evening (25-16, 25-17, 25-20). Charleston was led by Rachel Phalen, Beyonce Andrews, and Jessica Sunnenberg who recorded 8, 6, and 6 kills respectively.
 
JUST THE BASICS

SCORE: Charleston 3, West Virginia Wesleyan 0
LOCATION: Charleston, W. Va.
TEAM RECORDS: Charleston (1-2, 1-2 MEC), Wesleyan (2-2, 2-2 MEC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Golden Eagles got off to a hot start in the first set, where their hitting percentage showed to be the best as it has been all season at .387.  
 
The energy and intensity could be felt, as Charleston looked to seek revenge from their season-opening loss to the Bobcats on February 16^th. As the opening set played out, the Golden Eagles found themselves with an early 11-8 lead which consisted of very little back-and-forth play, with points being scored quickly off of kills.
 
Increasing their lead to 19-11 as partly due to four late-set kills from Rachel Phalen, the Golden Eagles concluded the first set as victors, winning 25-16. In the set, Charleston had zero attacking errors compared to seven for Wesleyan, while both teams filled the scorecard with 12 kills each.
 
The second set went back and forth with the game tied at five before the Golden Eagles rattled off 12 of the next 16 points to take a 17-11 lead. Out of the Wesleyan timeout, Charleston surged and was able to take the second set by a score of 25-17. In the set, both teams increasing their attacking numbers, but both saw a drop in hitting percentage, as the Wesleyan and Charleston hit .087 and .286 respectively.
 
After the set, Phalen saw her kill total increase to eight while Erin Thomas (9) and Makenzy Johnson (7) led the way in assists.
 
The third set saw Charleston once again cruise to an early advantage, as the home team looked to close out the match while holding an early 8-4 advantage. Despite the setback, Wesleyan was able to execute on miscommunication from the Golden Eagles on a stretch of points, cutting their deficit to just one at 11-10.
 
For the remainder of the set, it was evident that the Bobcats went into win-or-go-home mode and attempted to keep the score as close as possible. Despite the intensity shown by the Bobcats, Charleston was able to come out on top in the set, winning 25-20 and taking the match 3-0.

 
NEXT UP
Charleston is scheduled to take on crosstown rival West Virginia State on Friday evening with match time set for 7:00 PM at the Walker Convocation Center.