JEFFERSON CITY, TENN. — although freshman hitter Bailey Conner led the UVA Wise Cavaliers in kills and digs, it wasn't enough to overcome a double-double performance from Carson-Newman Eagle Julia Wheeler; falling 3-0 (8-25, 19-25, 14-25).

The UVA Wise Cavaliers (3-5, 0-4 SAC) were halted in the first set by a six-point run led by Taylor Keeran of Carson-Newman (11-2, 4-1 SAC), that put the Eagles up 19-6. The lead held to the end of the set and the Eagles won 25-8. Kaylee Scarce, Cassidy Farley, and Conner put down five kills in the match.

The Cavaliers came out with a different energy in set two, snagging the first two points by forcing Carson-Newman errors. The back-and-forth set consisted of a strong offensive effort from Conner and Adison Minor on the attack — Conner throwing down four and Minor with three of her own. Yet a few Cavalier errors and Wheeler hot on the Eagle's side allowed her squad to trail away and squeeze out a 25-19 win.

In the final set, Carson-Newman kicked it into gear and took a quick 2-0 lead with a Keeran kill and a Cavalier miscue. UVA Wise fought back with a monstrous block from Lauren Montes and Conner and swings from Scarce and Farley to bring them back into the set by an 8-10 score.

Later in the set, Carson-Newman's Wheeler found a rhythm and aided the Eagles in a five-point consecutive run. A final kill from Blake Cherry put the Eagles in the winner's circle, finalizing the set 25-14.

Up next, UVA Wise heads to Harrogate, Tenn. to face the Railsplitters of Lincoln Memorial on Saturday, Sep. 17 at 2:00 PM.

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