ROCK HILL, SC – The Winthrop volleyball team scored a hard-fought four set victory Friday evening over the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs at the Winthrop Coliseum.

The Eagles improved to 10-17 overall and 5-7 in the conference with the victory while Gardner-Webb fell to 9-19 overall and 3-8 in the Big South.

After a close opening to the first set that saw the two sides tied 8-8, Winthrop took full control with an 11-2 run, taking a 19-10 lead.  The Eagles easily took the first set 25-15.

The second set was a back-and-forth affair and the two squads were tied at 16-16.  After Winthrop went up 18-16, Gardner-Webb went on an 8-2 run, taking a 24-20 lead.  The Eagles were able to stave off four set points, tying the game at 24-24.  The two sides traded the next two points before Gardner-Webb was able to grab the final two, winning 27-25.

The Eagles were able to grab early control of the third set, taking a 7-2 lead.  Gardner-Webb was only able to get back as close as three points as Winthrop took the third set 25-19.

Winthrop took an early lead in the fourth set and held it for a good portion.  The Eagles led 18-15 before Gardner-Webb took five straight points to grab a 20-18 edge.  The teams traded points and the Bulldogs held a 23-22 lead but Winthrop was able to take the final three points of the match to win 25-23.

Nikki Drost led three Eagles with double-digit kills, tallying 17 kills and 15 digs.  Emma Weakland and Brianna Gray each added 14 kills.  Mallary McFadden led the team with 27 digs while Madilyn McCarty finished with 56 assists.  Rachel Lenz led the Eagles with six block assists.

Winthrop returns to action on Saturday afternoon when it hosts the UNC Asheville Bulldogs at 4 p.m.