Huntington, IN – The University of the Cumberlands volleyball team defeated Goshen 3-1 (25-19, 25-20, 23-25, 25-14) to rebound after falling in five sets to Baker 3-2 Friday afternoon at the Huntington Invitational.  Leah Crist and Olivia Verdecchia both set new career-highs for kills in a match.

Cumberlands (1-1) jumped out to a quick start against the Maple Leafs as Abbie Genders notched four kills to help UC jump out to an 8-2 lead in the first set.  The Patriots used a 5-0 run to extend its lead to 13-4 before Goshen cut the lead to four points at 16-12.  UC responded with a 5-1 run, which included an assisted block by Genders and Crist to extend the lead to 21-13.  The teams continued to trade points until Lexi Lester found Mackenzie Koch for the kill to take the first set 25-19.

The Patriots carried the momentum into the second set as they jumped out to a 7-2 lead capped off by a Jessica Putnam kill.  Goshen responded with an 11-4 run to take a 13-11 edge. Cumberlands battled back as Anna Zuniga connected with Putnam for the kill to spark a 5-0 run to put UC in front 18-14.  The Maple Leafs cut the lead to one before Cumberlands utilize a pair of 3-0 runs to take the second set 25-20.

The third set saw multiple runs both teams with Goshen eventually taking the set 25-23 to cut UC's lead 2-1.  In the fourth set, UC received three kills from Genders to take a 6-2 lead.  A Verdecchia kill sparked a 6-0 run to push the Patriots lead to 12-3.  The teams traded points until Cumberlands scored four unanswered to take a 21-11 advantage. A Verdecchia kill and an attack error by Goshen clinched the set 25-14 and the 3-1 win for the Patriots.

Genders led the way with 11 kills and three blocks, while Putnam finished with nine.  Jennifer Stein recorded a team-high 20 digs as Zuniga and Lester dished out 23 and 19 assists, respectfully.

In the first game, the Patriots started the day slow as Baker jumped out to a 2-0 lead winning the first two sets 25-18 and 25-22.  Cumberlands began to rally in the third set jumping out to a 5-1 lead. Juliet Montague spearheaded a 7-0 run to extend UC's lead to 12-2.  The two teams traded points with Baker cutting the lead to 18-12, however, that was the closest the Wildcats came as the Patriots took seven of the next eight points to take the set 25-13.

Baker took an early lead in the fourth set before a Lexi Lester service ace evened the score at 4-4.  After the score was tied three more times, Lester notched three service aces as part of seven unanswered points to give UC a 20-13 lead.  Cumberlands closed out the set by winning five straight points, including a pair of kills from Olivia Verdecchia to force a fifth set.

In the fifth set, Baker jumped out and took a 10-5 edge.  UC responded with a 5-1 run, including a pair of kills by Mackenzie Koch to cut the deficit to 11-10.  Anna Zuniga found Leah Crist for a kill, one of her career-high 12 kills in the match, to even the set at 12-12.  The match saw six more ties before Baker pulled away to take the set 20-18 and the match 3-2.

Crist and Genders notched 12 kills apiece, while Koch tallied ten.  Anna Zuniga dished out 28 assists as Lester finished with 19 to go along with five service aces.  Montague scooped 18 digs in the match as Ashley Sobocinski tallied ten digs and eight kills.

The Patriots will return to action Saturday, August 17, when they return to the court for day two of the Huntington Invitational.  UC will face Brescia at 1 p.m., before taking on Huntington at 5 p.m.

For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter - @UC_Patriots and @UCPatsGameday, Instagram - @UCPatriots, SnapChat - @UC_Patriots, YouTube – Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.