Sweeping defeats close out Eagles' time at Dig and Dive Invitational

WILMINGTON, N.C.— For a second-straight day, Carson-Newman was unable to secure a win in back-to-back matches, falling in a pair of 5-0 shutouts to Morehead State and Coastal Carolina to close out its time at the Dig and Dive Invitational in Wilmington, N.C.

Out of the three tournaments the team has played in this season, this was the first time C-N (0-12) went completely winless. The Eagles have now seen five matches on the year where a third set was never forced, losing both matches in two-set decisions today.

"We are competing really well," Head Coach Kody DuBarry said. "I see us implanting the things we learn in practice and I can see the growth."

The Eagles saw Morehead State (5-2) in their first tournament of the season at the Principia College Beach Bash on March 1. They have now faced a 5-0 loss to the Blue and Gold Eagles twice in a season.

Carson-Newman had not faced Coastal Carolina (10-7) since the 2016 season, now sitting at 0-2 all-time against the Chanticleers.

Match 1: Morehead State 5, C-N 0

Taryn Nichols and Lexy Headly kicked off the morning at the No. 5 position with a two-set loss to Chandler Clark and Lauren Rokey. The first set resulted in a low scoring game, 21-9. The Blue and Orange Eagles kicked it into gear in the second set, but ultimately fell 21-18.

At the No. 4 flight, Lauren Williams and Montgomery Sauter competed in a close first set throttle, but lost 21-19. Liz Allen and Hannah Mabrey brought a higher-level of intensity to the second set and took the match 21-10.

Kelly Hughes and Aryana Fazelina suited up at the No. 3 spot against Olivia Montelisciani and Georgia Childers. The Morehead State tandem swept in similar scoring sets 21-15, 21-13, giving Morehead State the outright win 3-0 before the final two flights.

The No. 2 grouping of Morgan Siwiec and Grace Seymour lost in sequential sets 21-9, 21-15 to Margaret Musselman and Olivia Lohmeier.

The top seeded pair, Summer Coulter and Abby Struewing, fell in the first set 21-8 to Hannah Keating and Allison Whitten. The C-N group doubled their points scored in the second set at 21-16, but still could not defeat Keating and Whitten, giving Morehead State the sweeping victory.

Match 2: Coastal Carolina 5, C-N 0

The final match-up of the day began with a pair of C-N losses at the No. 5 spot. Kaylin Eske and Anett Nemeth defeated Headly and Nichols in a quick 21-10, 21-7 game.

Montgomery Sauter and Lauren Williams played hard in the first set, but lost 21-15. They regressed in the second set, handing over the game to Kate Federico and Shelby Ladewig 21-7.

At the No. 3 spot, Hughes and Fazelina were beaten by Tanner Gauthier and Aleksandra Djuric in two low scoring sets 21-9, 21-5. This match gave the Chanticleers the win over the Eagles and made the score 3-0.

Seymour and Siwiec lost at the No. 2 flight 21-10, 21-11 to the Coastal Carolina duo Anaiah Boyer and Lucy Campbell.

The day ended with the competition of Coulter and Struewing at the No.1 seed. The C-N dual stayed engaged throughout the entire match, but could not overcome the threat of Leah Hardeman and Sydney Alvis. The Eagles group lost 21-13, 21-10.

"It has been a long time on the road. I look forward to seeing what we can do in a familiar place at home," DuBarry said.

Next on the docket for the Eagles is their first two-day home tournament of the year. C-N faces Tusculum and Eastern Kentucky at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., respectively, to open the event on March 30 on the C-N Sand Courts.