OWENSBORO, KY - Facing last year's G-MAC South Division champions, the Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers fought hard, but fell 3-0 (21-25, 21-25, 23-25) to the Ashland Eagles. 

Ashland improves to 8-3 (2-0 G-MAC), while Wesleyan drops to 2-8 (1-1 G-MAC). 

The first set saw the teams go back-and-forth, before a 4-1 run gave the Eagles a 13-8 lead over the home side. Down 18-11, the Panthers rattled off seven straight points to tie things up at 18-18, capping off the run with a massive Nicole Hughes kill. Ashland followed with a 5-0 run of their own, and eventually took the set 25-21. 

Ashland went up early in the second set, forcing a Panther timeout after going up 11-4. Wesleyan clawed back, using multiple Ava Rebarchik kills to cut the lead to just 19-17. The Panthers kept pushing, and kills from Mariah Jones and Nicole Hughes tied the game up at 21-21. Ashland proved why they are one of the top teams in the G-MAC, rattling off four straight points to grab the set victory. 

Yet again, Wesleyan found themselves down, falling in a 15-8 hole midway through the set. Capped off by kills from Claire Lange and Rebarchik, Wesleyan went on a 9-2 run to cut the lead to just 20-19 in favor of the Eagles. Just as in the first two sets, Ashland finished strong, coming away with the tight 25-23 set victory. 

Nicole Hughes led the way with 13 kills in the game, followed by Olivia Patton (9) and Claire Lange (7). Julia Kupper continued her strong play at the setter position, notching 32 helpers, while Ava Rebarchik, Lange, and Mariah Jones each grabbed two blocks. Hughes and Kupper each notched 13 digs, while Stella Kleffman was close behind with 12. 

The Panthers will look to grab a winning record for the weekend when they host the Tiffin Dragons tomorrow afternoon. Gametime is set for 2 p.m. CT.

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