The Eastern Mennonite volleyball women were looking to break a skid Tuesday night when they hosted Virginia Wesleyan. Although the Lady Royals played well, they couldn't get past the visiting Marlins in a 3-0 defeat.
VWC controlled game one and grabbed a quick 25-15 win.
But the women were ready in game two. After giving up the first two points, EMU exploded on an 11-1 run. The Marlins regrouped and scored five straight, then used an 8-0 streak to go ahead 21-17.
The Lady Royals tied the score at 23-23, but a kill and service ace gave game two to Virginia Wesleyan 25-23.
Play was even early in game three before the Marlins inched ahead and closed the night with a 25-19 score.
Eastern Mennonite was at its best in game two, hitting at a .455 clip with 11 kills and just one attack error. But the women also had six of their eight serve receive errors in the game.
Sara Ritchie (Harrisonburg, VA/Turner Ashby) posted team highs of 12 kills and 12 digs, along with two service aces. Tabitha Bowman (Waynesboro, VA/Stuarts Draft) was right behind her with 11 kills and a solo block.
Setter Mattie Lehman (New Paris, IN/Bethany Christian) set up 22 assists and added seven digs. Libero Brittany Childress (Gloucester, VA/Christchurch) had nine digs.
EMU slips to 3-10 with the loss, including 0-4 in the ODAC. The women stay at home for their next match, hosting future ODAC-rival Shenandoah Thursday night at 6:30pm.