ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Presbyterian College Blue Hose volleyball team (6-16, 2-7) faced a tough challenge on Saturday afternoon, falling to the Winthrop Eagles (9-8, 6-1) in straight sets, 3-0 (16-25, 22-25, 16-25).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST SET
Despite early kills from Courtney Williams, Julia Yurkovich, and Anna Baranski, Winthrop gained an early 7-3 advantage in the opening set. The Blue Hose rallied as Ashley Miller and Williams contributed kills, narrowing the gap to 9-7. After two more Eagle kills, Miller and Williams helped PC capture four of the next five points, pulling within one at 12-11. In a close back-and-forth stretch, Baranski and Miller each added kills, bringing the score to 15-14, with Winthrop holding onto a slight lead. However, the Eagles closed the set strong, capturing 10 of the final 12 points to secure the first set, 25-16.
 
SECOND SET
In the second set, the Blue Hose came out strong, taking a quick 4-1 lead behind two kills from Williams. Winthrop responded with a four-point run, but PC regained momentum, taking a pair of points off a Yurkovich kill to lead 6-5. The Eagles then surged with five consecutive points to flip the score to 10-6. A solo block from Williams ended Winthrop's run, and Yurkovich's kill kept PC within two.
 
The teams exchanged points, bringing the score to 15-13 before another three-point run from Winthrop extended their lead to 18-13. Presbyterian fought back, as Yurkovich led with four kills, closing the gap to 20-19. However, Winthrop edged out three of the next four points, advancing to a 23-20 lead. The Blue Hose pushed back with a late kill from Elyse Hutchinson, who then teamed up with Williams for a block. Winthrop ultimately closed out the set 25-22.
 
THIRD SET
The set opened with a three-point exchange, with kills from Hutchinson and Yurkovich contributing to PC's early score. Winthrop gained momentum, extending their lead to 6-3 before Miller's kill brought PC within one at 6-5. The Eagles then pushed forward, expanding their advantage to 10-7 and then launching a six-point surge that took them to 16-7. Miller responded with a service ace to make it 16-9, but Winthrop held firm, stretching the score to 19-10. The teams traded points to 21-12, with Winthrop maintaining a comfortable margin. Despite late kills from Baranski, Miller, and Hutchinson, the Eagles secured the sweep, closing the third set at 25-16.
 
NOTABLES
Baranski took her 16^th double-double of the season with 28 assists and 10 digs.

UP NEXT
The Blue Hose will continue their four-game road stretch with a matchup against the USC Upstate Spartans on Friday, November 1, at 6:00 p.m.