ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The Eagles were swept Tuesday afternoon, 3-0, by the UNC Asheville Bulldogs. The final score of each set was 25-20, 29-27 and 25-20.
 
KEY CONTRIBUTORS
Morgan Bossler (12 kills, .611 HT percentage, 1 service ace)
Leah Metzger (10 digs, 1 assist)
Jana Owens (28 assists, 4 digs)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
In Set 1, the Eagles battled back from an early 5-1 deficit. Three straight points for the Eagles, two off attack errors, made the contest tied at 10. UNC Asheville took off with a 5-1 run to pull ahead 20-16. Winthrop never let up but another scoreless run, this time 3-0, gave the Bulldogs a 23-18 and they would go on to win the set, 25-20.
 
Set 2 was back and forth, seeing 11 ties and three lead changes. The Eagles led for a majority of the set, leading by as many as six, with a 20-14 edge.  The Bulldogs responded with a 5-0 run, cutting Winthrop's cushion to just one point, 20-19. Back-to-back points for the home team tied the set up at 21. Asheville regained the lead behind a 3-0 run with an opportunity to secure the set, 24-22. The Eagles tied the set up at 24 behind a Nikkia Benitez kill and a bad set from the Bulldogs. A service error and an attack error put the Eagles ahead, 27-26, late. Out of the timeout, the Bulldogs strung together three straight points to take the set, 29-27.
 
The Eagles led 7-3 early on in the third set of the match. The match remained close but Asheville took the lead behind four straight kills, 9-8. An Emily Wunder kill tied the set up at 11 apiece. A 5-0 gave Asheville a comfortable 16-11 lead. The Eagles hung around but were never able to retake the lead. Back-to-back points for the Bulldogs secured the 25-20 set win and 3-0 match sweep.
 
UP NEXT
The Eagles and Bulldogs will face off on Wednesday, Mar. 31 in the season finale. First serve is scheduled for 3 p.m.