EC Volleyball Comes Up Short at Blackburn, 3-0

CARLINVILLE, Ill. – The Eureka volleyball team gave Blackburn a challenge on Wednesday, but the Red Devils couldn't quite get over the hump, falling in three tough sets.

The Beavers came out on top, 25-23, 25-19, 25-23 to improve to 4-1 on the season.

In the first set, Eureka led by as many as three at 15-12 and never trailed by more than two. Unfortunately for the Red Devils, the latter came at the very end.

A kill by Emma Harris (Streator, Ill./Streator) gave EC a 23-22 advantage, but back-to-back kills by Kyliegh Marty and Kaitlynn Wiegand put the Beavers ahead and a final kill by Wiegand sealed it.

Eureka was in control early in Set 2 and led by as many as four at 9-5. However, Blackburn answered with a 5-0 run and never trailed the rest of the way. Eureka tied it at 13-13 and 16-16, but the Beavers scored six of the last seven points to seal the win.

The third and final set was a familiar story. The Red Devils led by as many as five early, but Blackburn got hot, worked it way back in the game and seized the upper hand.

Trailing 24-19 at match point, Eureka fought off four points in a row, but the match ended on a kill by powerful kill to the back row by Wiegand.

On Wednesday, Eureka (0-5) is back in action against Webster (1-1) for another St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference  Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena. First serve is at 7 p.m.

Individual statistics for this match are currently being recalculated by the host school's sports information department and will be available in the near future.