Wilmore, KY – The Patriots took down the Asbury Eagles 3-1 (22-25, 25-15, 25-21, 25-12). Cumberland advances to 20-7 on the season as they expanded their win streak to eight games.  

Anna Blumeier led the way for the Pats as she tallied 18 kills for the game. Shelby Lackey added 12 with three blocks, and Allyson Grava came away with eight kills, 17 digs, and an ace. Kendall Arnold put in 26 assists, eight digs, two kills, and an ace, while Savanah Schwarz added 17 assists, three digs and a block. Juliet Banks also came away with 15 digs.

The first set started slow for the Pats offense. Lackey notched the first kill to take a 4-3 lead. After an eagle error, Lackey would get a solo block and Grava followed with her first kill. After a few more plays and a short break, Danielle Jackson scored the next three points for the Pats to take a 14-12 lead. From there the set would go back-and-forth, with Asbury taking the first set.

Blumeier got the second set going with a kill, and Jackson followed with a kill of her own two plays later. After falling behind 5-3, UC would go on an 11-1 run to take control of the set. The run started with an Asbury error, then Blumeier notched a kill followed by a Grava ace. After another Blumeier kill, Lackey put in back-to-back kills. A few plays later, Banks notched an ace to force an Eagle timeout. A couple plays after the timeout, Blumeier put in back-to-back kills of her own. Emily Prewitt stepped in and notched a kill to give the Pats a 22-12 lead. A couple plays later, Blumeier gave UC set point with a kill, and an Eagle error gave UC the set.

The third set was tightly contested the whole set with the score going back-and-forth. Joining the action late, with the score 19-17 in Asbury's favor, Schwarz notched a solo block that gave the Patriots momentum. Following the block, Jackson and Lackey put in back-to-back kills to take a 20-19 lead. The next play, Blumeier put in a kill, then two plays later she added another kill for the 22-20 lead. Following an Eagles timeout, the Pats got two points off errors, along with an Arnold ace to take the set.

Cumberlands carried that momentum into set four, as they opened the set 11-4. Lackey was a key part of the run as she had five kills to open the set. From there Lackey, put in a block to make it 13-6. The next play Blumeier put in a kill, followed by back-to-back aces from Banks to force a timeout. After the timeout, Blumeier added another kill to make the set score 17-6. Asbury scored a point, then had back-to-back errors to give UC a 20-7 lead. The next play Blumeier notched a kill followed by another Eagles error. Kills from Prewitt and Jackson gave UC set and match point, and Grava ended the match with a kill

Cumberlands returns to action on Friday the 28^th, as they head to Crestview Hills to take on Thomas More at 6 pm to end the month

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