CHARLESTON, S.C.- Appalachian State University volleyball was unable to hang with a tough College of Charleston team Saturday afternoon at the Carolina First Arena, as the Apps suffered a 3-0 loss to the Cougars. The defeat is Appalachian's second straight in conference play and drops ASU to 15-9 overall and 6-5 in league action, while CofC improves to 22-5 on the season and 10-1 in SoCon action.

The first set got off to a rough start for a sluggish Mountaineer team that found itself down 6-0 early.

Unable to get anything going offensively, a Kasey Sauls kill earned ASU its third point of the set, but the Mountaineers faced a 10-point deficit.

The Cougars were paced by impressive offensive play by Whitney Russell and Elyse Chubb who pushed CofC to the double-digit lead.

Back-to-back kills by Sarah Havel put ASU down by 13 and the Black and Gold were never able to recover, despite both Lauren Swecker and Anna Wagner registering kills down the stretch. It was not enough however; as ASU went on to suffer a 25-13 first set loss.

Appalachian picked up its pace in the second set, as action was knotted at seven apiece.

Offensive production came from all over for the Apps, as Caroline Sedon, Meghann Forshey and Wagner contributed on the offensive front.

Despite the back and forth play, the set was knotted for the final time at nine, as three straight point by the Cougars put CofC on top for good, up 12-9.

Two errors by Appalachian, and continued strong play by Ginny Phillips for the Cougars pushed CofC in front 15-11.

A block assist by Sedon and Swecker pulled ASU back within three points, down just 16-13, but College of Charleston was able to stave off the Mountaineers as a final Black and Gold attack error gave CofC the 25-16 second set win.

Play was hotly contested early on in third set action, but the Cougars took the lead at the beginning of the set and never relinquished it.

After a Sedon kill made it a one-point set, CofC extended its lead to five points, taking a 15-10 advantage off an Appalachian error.

Never able to find any rhythm, Appalachian couldn't get any closer than five points, as the Cougars dealt ASU the 25-18 third set and 3-0 match loss.

Swecker and Sedon finished tied for a team-best six kills, while Russell led the way for CofC, registering 12 kills on 25 attacks.

ASU looks to get back in the winning column and snap its two-match skid, as the Mountaineers begin a three-match homestand, Wednesday, November 3. Appalachian opens its first of three home contests against Western Carolina, with the match slated to start at 7 p.m. in the Holmes Center.