JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - Despite a career-high from freshman Kendall Vallancourt, the Anderson University volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (20-25, 27-25, 16-25, 23-25) decision to Carson-Newman in South Atlantic Conference action Friday night at Holt Fieldhouse.

"We just made too many errors tonight and went conservative when we should have swung for the fence," said Anderson head coach Craig Mosqueda. "We definitely had our moments but there were too many times when we were out of system and we didn't make a play on the ball."

Anderson (22-7, 15-6 SAC) saw its win streak halted at four, while Carson-Newman (24-5, 19-2 SAC) earned a sweep of the season series with its fourth straight win and 13th victory in its last 14 outings.

Vallancourt led the Trojans with a career-high 16 kills on a .464 hitting percentage, while adding five digs and a pair of block assists. Senior middle blocker Hailey Pittman posted 12 kills and four total blocks, while senior outside hitter Shannon Gillespie notched seven kills and 10 digs on the night. Sophomore Priscilla Irizarry recorded her 14th double-double of the season with 29 assists and 12 digs, while chipping in three service aces. Senior defensive specialist Alix Hooker added a team-high 17 digs, with sophomore Jessica Harris recording six total blocks in the effort.

Carson-Newman senior middle blocker Jenna Wilson led all players with 21 kills, while senior outside hitter Rachel Harper added 16 kills and Kyrie Pennington chipped in 11 kills. Harper paced the Eagles with 15 digs, with senior setter Kristen Pickett handing out 57 assists.
AU claimed an early 4-2 edge on back-to-back kills from Vallancourt and Gillespie. With the score knotted at seven apiece, Carson-Newman built its largest lead of the frame on the strength of a 13-5 outburst, as the Eagles capitalized on AU's .071 hitting percentage at that point. The Trojans answered with a 7-2 run of their own, cutting the deficit to three, but were unable to catch Carson-Newman.

The second set featured 11 ties and seven lead changes, with Carson-Newman scoring the first three point of the frame. But the Trojans evened the score at six and gradually pulled out to an 11-8 advantage. AU held the advantage until the Eagles tied the score once again, at 14-14, and neither team was able to build more than a two-point cushion the rest of the way. Carson-Newman held a 21-19 edge and had set point at 24-22, but the Trojans staved off the Eagles on two consecutive kills from Vallancourt. Wilson knocked down a kill to give the Eagles an edge, but it was the last point they would score, as AU took advantage of back-to-back errors and Pittman finished the set with her sixth kill of the contest.

The third set saw five early ties before Carson-Newman snapped a 7-7 deadlock with an 8-2 run. The Trojans climbed back within 15-12, but could get no closer, as the Eagles built a five-point lead, then posted the final five points of the set for the win.

Carson-Newman took a quick 5-1 advantage in the fourth frame and still held a 13-9 lead before the Trojans erupted on a 7-2 run to take their first lead of the set. Pittman and Gillespie sparked the comeback, with Vallancourt capping the surge with a pair of kills to give AU a 16-15 lead. C-N countered by taking a 19-17 advantage before the Trojans answered again with a 4-1 spurt to claim a brief 21-20 lead. But the Eagles regained the edge on three consecutive kills and held off the Trojans at the end.

Anderson will look to get back in the win column on Saturday, when the Trojans wrap up the regular season by visiting Lincoln Memorial on the Lady Railsplitters' Senior Day. First-serve is scheduled for 2 p.m. in Harrogate, Tenn.