Williamsburg, KY – The University of the Cumberlands volleyball team struggled to find an offensive rhythm and ultimately fell 3-0 to Thomas More (25-16, 25-17, 25-23) Saturday afternoon at the UC Volleyball Gym. With the win, the Saints improve to 9-4 overall and 4-1 in conference play, while the Patriots move to 9-6 and 1-4 against the MSC.

Cumberlands came out strong in the first set as Shelby Lackey, Lily Chapman, and Leah Crist each tallied a kill to help give UC a 5-4 lead.  Chapman added a pair of kills to offset a Saints run however Thomas More took an 8-7 advantage.  From that point Thomas More used a four-point run coupled with a pair of three-point runs to take the first set 25-16.

The Patriots looked to even the match as Lexi Lester recorded an ace before finding Mackenzie Koch for a kill to put UC in front 5-3.  After Thomas More tied the score, Lester connected with Olivia Verdecchia and Koch for kills to give Cumberlands an 8-6 edge.  Thomas More went on a five point run to take an 11-8 lead, before UC responded with a 5-2 run, capped off by a Koch block, to even the score at 13-13.  From that point the Saints went of a six-point run and closed out the set with four unanswered points to take the set 25-17 and extend their lead to 2-0.

The two teams began the third set trading points. Trailing 7-5, Koch and Crist tallied consecutive kills to even the score at 7-7.  Thomas More went on an 8-2 run to take a 15-9 lead and later extend it to 17-10.  UC started to mount a comeback as Savannah Schwarz found Chapman and Sobocinski for kills to cut the deficit to 17-14.  Cumberlands added a three-point run capped off by a Juliet Montague service ace to bring the Patriots within a point.  A few points later, Schwarz found Koch and Sobocinski for kills as part of a 4-0 run, to give the Patriots a 21-20 lead, however Thomas More went on a 5-2 run to win the set 25-23 and the match 3-0.

Schwarz, who played in two sets, recorded a team-high 10 assists to go along with eight digs, while Montague tallied a team-high 17 digs.  Chapman led  the offense with nine kills, while Koch finished with six kills and two blocks.

The Patriots will return to action Wednesday, September 25, when they host Shawnee State in MSC play.  First serve is set for 6 p.m. with live video available here and live stats available here.  

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