BRISTOL, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman Eagles (5-3) won two decisive matches against North Greenville and Lees-McRae to conclude their weekend 3-1 in the King University Invitational.

After dropping the first set against the Crusaders 25-20, Carson-Newman reeled off three straight wins of 25-16, 25-18 and 25-22 to defeat North Greenville in its first match of the day.

"We were eager to get in the gym today and redeem our performance from Friday," head coach Shannon Mincey said after the North Greenville match. "Many players off of our bench contributed to help us secure the win."

Carson-Newman lost five of the final six points in the initial frame, but came out firing in the second set as the Eagles won 12 of the first 16 points. Freshman Jessie Sokol (Franklin, Tenn.) and junior Rachel Harper (Chattanooga, Tenn.) each notched four kills.

Coach Mincey's crew again got off to a great start in the third set winning eight of the first nine points as freshman JaLesa Beaver (Katy, Texas) tallied five kills in six attempts in the set.

The Crusaders fought back in the fourth stanza to take a 12-11 lead, but that would be the only advantage North Greenville had in the final three sets as Carson-Newman captured the set on a kill by Beaver. Five different players recorded multiple kills.

Overall, Harper led the way with 15 kills on an impressive .314 hitting percentage while Beaver collected 12 smashes on a .450 attack percentage.

Junior Kristen Pickett (Cleveland, Tenn.) dished out 37 assists while Sophomore Lindsey Wells (Morristown, Tenn.) chipped in 15 helpers. Freshamn Taylor Lowe (Franklin, Tenn.) set a new career-high with a 28 dig performance.

The Eagles swept the final match of the weekend against Lees-McRae 25-11, 25-22 and 25-20 to win their third match in four games.

Carson-Newman soared out to a 9-0 lead to start the first set that saw the Eagles hit .467 and tally three blocks.

Holding a narrow lead of 19-18 in the second set, Carson-Newman reeled off six of the final nine points to grab control of the game. Five different players recorded multi-kill performances as they put up a .310 attack percentage.

With the score knotted at 20 in the third stanza, the Eagles scored the final five points of the match with sophomore Kianna Sedlacek (Cardington, Ohio) on serve to win capture their second sweep of the season. Sophomore Kiayna O'Neal (Katy, Texas) led the way with three kills on six attempts.

"Our win against Lees-McRae was well-balanced," Mincey said. "Everyone contributed during this match and got great game experience. We are appreciative of King University hosting this tournament. Our team will take Sunday off, resting our bodies in preparation for Tuesday's match against Mars Hill."

Overall, the squad hit .216 while holding the Bobcats to a .056 hitting percentage courtesy of five blocks by Mincey's group.

Sedlacek led the way with six kills and six digs while Beaver notched five kills and two block assists. Seven different athletes recorded multiple kills in the match.

Lowe finished with 12 scoops, one of three players with at least five digs. Pickett tallied 12 assists and Wells chipped in with five helpers.

Carson-Newman returns to Holt Fieldhouse Tuesday, September 17 at 7 p.m. against Mars Hill in its second South Atlantic Conference game of the season. The game can be seen in its entirety on cneagles.com/live with video.