BOONE, N.C.- Appalachian State University volleyball came up just short against Southern Conference South division foe Georgia Southern Sunday afternoon, as the Mountaineers were handed a 3-1 loss by the Eagles. The loss drops ASU to 15-8 on the season and 6-4 in conference action, while GSU improves to a stout 18-7 and 9-1 in SoCon play.

A sluggish start in first set play doomed the Mountaineers early on, as the squad could never recover from an early 12-5 deficit.

Five Black and Gold miscues on the offensive front hindered ASU, which struggled to find any rhythm offensively.
Anna Wagner tried to get something going, as she tallied a kill to pull the Apps within four points down 14-10, but GSU posted a silencing 5-2 run, making the score 19-12 in the Eagles favor.

Wagner ended the match with 10 kills, in addition to totaling 14 digs and three block assists.

Kills in the waning points by Bethany Sanford and Hannah Nelson pushed Georgia Southern to the dominating 25-17 first set win.

Sanford was one of three Eagles to finish the match with double-digit kills, as she poured in 12.

Able to muster a comeback, ASU played Georgia Southern tough in the second set and was able to eke out a hard-fought 29-27 second set victory.

ASU started off strong, jumping out to a 9-4 advantage, with Meghann Forshey recording a block and Kelly Rhein earning a service ace.

The Eagles however would not go away easily, as they posted a 13-4 run to grab the lead and make the score 17-13 in their favor.

It was points by Parker Small and Bethany Sanford, along with Appalachian errors that enabled Georgia Southern to get back into the set.

Continuing to rally, a Lauren Swecker service ace knotted action at 18 all, and the set was tied seven more times, before a kill by Maggie Seeds and a block assist by Rhein and Caroline Sedon earned ASU the thrilling two-point second set win.

Unable to repeat its second set performance, Appalachian fell behind at the beginning of the third set and was never able to rally.

After facing a 14-7 deficit, ASU was able to pull within four points, making the score 18-14 off a GSU attack error, but that would be the narrowest of margins for the Apps.

Offensive productivity down the stretch let Georgia Southern take the 25-21 third set win.

The Eagles were once again too much for Appalachian in the fourth set, as GSU came out strong and the Mountaineers were unable to keep pace with their conference competitor.

Consecutive kills by Alison Blasingame and Wagner put Appalachian down just one at the 11-10 mark, but the Eagles outscored ASU 6-1 over the next few plays to make the score 16-11 in their favor, and that proved to be the difference maker in the set.

Georgia Southern was able to retain its advantage and hand ASU a 25-17 and 3-1 match defeat.

The Black and Gold head back out on the road, as they travel to Charleston, S.C., Saturday October 30 to battle south division leader College of Charleston. The contest between the Apps and Cougars is set to begin at 2 p.m.