OWENSBORO, KY - Facing maybe the hottest team in the country in the Walsh Cavaliers, the Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers fell 3-0 (19-25, 15-25, 24-26) on Saturday. 

The Cavaliers, who haven't lost a set in seven matches, improve to 12-0 (4-0 G-MAC), while Wesleyan falls to 2-11 (1-4 G-MAC).

The Panthers came out with that homecoming energy to open the game, capping off a 9-1 start with two huge kills from Nicole Hughes and Ava Rebarchik. Walsh came crawling back into it, eventually using a 6-0 run to cut the Panther lead to just 12-11. An 8-2 run late put Walsh up four, and they went on to take the set by a score of 25-19. 

Set two saw Walsh take a 6-0 lead and never look back, cruising for the 25-15 victory. 

The third set was a back-and-forth affair early, then a big Walsh run saw them take a 20-10 lead. The Panthers weren't about to go down without a fight, as multiple kills from Rebarchik, Hughes, and Hallie McGuire led to Wesleyan eventually tying the set up at 24-24. Walsh managed to grab the final two points to avoid their first set loss in nearly three weeks. 

Nicole Hughes led with nine kills on the day, while Camila Sandoval dished out 13 assists. Embry Burgess had 11 digs in the game, while Hughes, Ava Rebarchik, and Mariah Jones each finished with three blocks. 

The Panthers hit the road next weekend when they travel to Tiffin and Findlay to take on the Dragons and Oilers. The Tiffin match is Friday at 4 p.m. CT, while the Findlay contest will be Saturday at 11 a.m. CT. 

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