WINGATE, N.C. – Carson-Newman fought back down two sets but ultimately fell short to the pre-season conference favorites, Wingate.

Carson-Newman (11-5, 7-2 SAC) rallied back after falling in the first two sets to [RV] Wingate (14-2, 6-1 SAC), winning sets three and four before ultimately falling in five.

"The comeback effort and fire is who this team is." Carson-Newman volleyball head coach Cat Collins said. "We are fully capable of great things. We had athletes step up in tremendous ways tonight, and this team grew. We're getting better, and we'll get them next time."

The Cherry sisters collected double-doubles on the evening, with Blair (Knoxville, Tenn.) obtaining 33 assists and ten digs while Blake (Cookeville, Tenn.) grabbed 12 kills and 16 digs.

Maddie Hurst (Blaine, Tenn.) led the team in kills with 13, while Bennett McCombs (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) tallied 21 digs for her second match this season with over 20 digs. Taylor Keeran (Galion, Ohio) was the top blocker, with five blocks, all of which assisted.

Other Carson-Newman highlights included three service aces in a single rotation for McKenna Hall (Bristol, Wis.) to start the third set. They kickstarted the Eagles' comeback attempt and the collegiate debut of Bella Cardello (Fountain Hills, Ariz.), who collected a dig and four assisted blocks.

First Set (25-15, WU) – The SAC preseason poll favorites came out swinging, forcing Carson-Newman to make mistake after mistake as the Eagles hit -.100 in the set while Wingate's counterpart with a percentage of .190. Carson-Newman kept it close, but the Bulldogs pulled away with a 9-3 run, putting the set on ice with a pair of Eagle errors.

Second Set (25-16, WU) – Using the momentum from the first set victory, Wingate stormed out of the second set gates with a 6-0 start to the frame. Carson-Newman couldn't find its footing, trailing by as much as 13 before a 7-1 C-N run pushed the score closer, but the damage had been done as Wingate buried back-to-back kills to push to a two-set advantage.

Third Set (27-25, C-N) – Handing Wingate its first home conference set loss of the season, Carson-Newman found its rhythm in between sets two and three, forcing Wingate to use both of its timeouts in the first ten points of the frame with the Eagles up 9-1. Wingate would storm back, eventually tying the set at 24 apiece after Carson-Newman had four set points. Once the set exceeded 25, the Eagles never relinquished the lead with a Wingate attacking error, giving C-N the set win.

Fourth Set (25-22, C-N) – With the momentum on their side, the Eagles kept swinging hard. After the Dogs had an early one-point lead, Carson-Newman used a 9-1 run to take control of the set. A Blair Cherry service ace put a feather in the cap for the fourth and pushed the match to a first to 15.

Fifth Set (15-7, WU) – Carson-Newman's comeback efforts fell short in the fifth as Wingate took an early lead that the Eagles could not recover from. The Bulldogs hit a stellar .500 in the final set to pass Carson-Newman in the South Atlantic Conference standings.

The victory is now the fifth straight for Wingate in the all-time series. The loss marks the second straight for the Eagles, finishing the three-match road trip 1-2.

Carson-Newman next returns home on Tuesday night for a rivalry rematch with Tusculum at 7:00 p.m. To keep up with Carson-Newman volleyball, follow us on social media @CN_Eagles on X and Instagram, and Facebook by following Carson-Newman Athletics.