ANDERSON, S.C. - The Anderson volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (25-18, 21-25, 19-25, 22-25) South Atlantic Conference decision to Carson-Newman in its regular-season home finale.

Anderson slipped to 10-16 overall and 8-12 in the conference with its fourth consecutive setback, with the loss dampening the farewell for redshirt juniors Tinsley Hallman and Priscilla Irizarry. Carson-Newman improved to 24-5 overall and 17-3 in the league with its fourth consecutive victory, while securing at least the second seed in the upcoming SAC Championship.

Sophomore Marissa Mitter led all players with 17 kills, marking her fifth straight contest and 11th match this season with double-figure kills. Sophomore Serena Jackson added 16 kills on the strength of a .361 hitting percentage, marking her 13th contest with double-figure kills. Irizarry shared match-high honors with 46 assists and added 12 digs for her 12th double-double of the campaign, including six in the last seven matches. Freshman Emily Conard recorded a match-best 25 digs, with Megan Embry adding 15 digs and Hallman narrowly missing her sixth double-double of the season with 14 digs and nine kills.

Behind Hallman's serves, the Trojans scored the first five points of the opening set, and while Carson-Newman battled back within two on two occasions, the Trojans refused to surrender the lead en route to the seven-point win on the strength of a .321 attacking accuracy.

The Lady Eagles responded by posting a .341 hitting percentage of their own in the second frame and never trailed after opening the set with a 7-3 run.

Carson-Newman took a two-set lead by claiming the third frame, as the Lady Eagles again opened the set with an early surge. After trailing by four points early, AU cut the C-N advantage to just 13-11, but could get no closer.

The fourth set featured 10 ties, with the Lady Eagles snapping a 12-12 deadlock and taking a lead they would not relinquish. The Trojans stayed within two and trimmed the deficit to just 22-21 on a kill from Jackson, but C-N countered by scoring three of the final four points for the three-point win.

Anderson will close out the regular season with a two-match conference road swing, beginning at Coker on Friday and wrapping up at league-leading Wingate Saturday afternoon.