WILMINGTON, N.C. – After having won six of their previous seven matches, College of Charleston volleyball fell on the road Wednesday night, 3-0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-20) to UNC Wilmington at Hanover Hall.
The Cougars (13-9, 5-2 CAA) played well defensively against the Seahawks (15-5, 5-1 CAA), but were eventually undone by 30 attack errors in a sporadic offensive showing that netted just a .024 team hitting percentage.
Playing in her 129th career match – the 10th most in program history – senior setter Kallie McKown was a bright spot for the Cougars with 14 assists and 17 digs, notching her league-leading 16th double-double of the season. Making the most of McKown's distribution was senior Sloane White who hit .194 and racked up 10 kills. Senior captain Cara Howley put away 8 kills, while sophomore middle blocker Maddie Hills who had seven kills on 16 swings – good enough for a .438 hitting percentage.
The first set was competitive as the Cougars rode the strong play of Hills to take an early 7-3 lead. The Seahawks quickly clawed back, however, tying the match at eight and again at 14 after a Cougar attack error. That was as close as the opening set would come as the Seahawks rattled off six of the next seven points to take a commanding lead, and eventually the set, 25-21.
After a 25-22 second set loss, in which the Cougars hit .071 as a team, CofC found themselves in a must win third frame against the Seahawks. However, while the sense of urgency was there, the execution was not and the Cougars fell behind early, 7-3. After tying the match at 15, UNCW rode a .243 team hitting percentage to win 10 of the next 15 points – closing out the set and the match, 25-20.
Next up for the Cougars is a trip to Elon, N.C., Sunday, Oct. 19 to face the Phoenix. First serve is set for 3:00 p.m.
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