FAYETTEVILLE, N.C.  Methodist volleyball battled hard but lost 3-1 to visiting North Carolina Wesleyan College on their home court of the Riddle Center in a USA South Athletic Conference match Thursday night.

THE ESSENTIALS
Final score: N.C. Wesleyan def. Methodist, 3-1 (27-25, 22-25, 25-19, 25-20)
Records: Methodist 10-15 (2-11 USA So.), N.C. Wesleyan 16-10 (7-6)
Location: Riddle Center; Fayetteville, N.C.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The opening set help set the tone of the match, where it saw eight lead changes and 14 ties. The largest lead in the set was when the Battling Bishops were up four, 16-12.
• The Monarchs eased that by going on a 4-0 run to tie it at 16-16. The rest of the time saw the squads matching each other until N.C. Wesleyan scored the final three points to take the set 27-25.
• Much like the last set, there were multiple lead changes and ties. The pivotal moment for Methodist though was a five-point swing midway through to claim a 17-14 advantage and they never relinquished the lead from that point.
• The Battling Bishops opened up the third set by winning the first five points. The Monarchs brought it back to within one a few times but that was the closest they would get before falling in the set.
• N.C. Wesleyan would use another early five-point swing in the fourth set to pull ahead of Methodist and never looked on their way to win the match.  

MATCH NOTES

• Four Monarchs would finish the match with double-digit kills with Geneva Barriger leading the quartet with a match-high 17.  
• Senior Janie Harmelink used her defensive skills to rake up a match-high 30 digs, which also ties career best.

UP NEXT
Methodist will finish their season on a five game road trip, starting with a USA South quad-match against Mary Baldwin University and Southern Virginia University, hosted by N.C. Wesleyan. The Battling Bishops will also face the same two opponents as the Monarchs.