MORGANTOWN, WV – The Winthrop volleyball team fell in three sets Friday evening to the West Virginia Mountaineers on the first day of the WVU Invitational.

The Eagles (6-6) struggled offensively across the three-set match, hitting only .012 for the match.  Brianna Gray led the team with six kills while Keaupono Fey added five.  Gray also added four blocks.  Hannah Lackey finished with 11 assists.

West Virginia jumped out to a big lead in the opening set, 14-3, and went on to easily take the first set 25-17.  Winthrop hung close with the Mountaineers early in the second set.  After the two sides were tied 11-11, West Virginia opened a 23-16 lead.  The Eagles were able to battle back within two at 23-21 but couldn't get closer as they fell 25-21.

The third set was again close in the early going but West Virginia was again able to pull away late.  After a 16-16 tie, West Virginia went on a 4-0 run, going up 20-16 and taking the set 25-20.

Winthrop will return to action on Saturday with a 10 a.m. game against Dartmouth and a 4:30 p.m. contest against Akron.