Union volleyball defeats Columbia in three sets; falls to Cumberlands in five

Barbourville, Ky. – The Union Commonwealth University volleyball team played in two games on Saturday. The Bulldogs hosted Columbia in the opening match, while facing Cumberlands in the second matchup.

Game One:

The Bulldogs defeated Columbia 3-0 (25-16, 25-13, 25-13). Raquel Kessler led all players in kills with 15 off 23 attempts. Shumaker totaled eight kills, while Katherin Acosta tallied six and Berkli Benefield registered five.

Maddy McGaughey led all players in assists with 19. Sarah Charkosky totaled nine assists. McGaughey also led Union in digs with nine. The Bulldogs advanced to 5-9 (3-2 AAC) on the season, while Columbia fell to 2-9 (1-4 AAC).

"I like the fact that our offense came ready to play this morning, and put up great hitting percentages and kills," Union head coach Jeremy Wise said. "Also, we got to use all our available players this morning."

Game Two:

The Bulldogs fell short as Cumberlands won 3-2 (25-23, 23-25, 25-8, 21-25, 15-7.) Kessler led UCU in kills with 14, while Berkli Benefield tallied nine and Shumaker recorded eight. Acosta tallied six kills.

McGaughey tallied 28 assists, which led UCU. Charkosky recorded 10 assists. Kessler led Union in digs with 16, while Nicole Almestica totaled 14. McGaughey registered nine digs. The Bulldogs are now 5-10 on the season, while Cumberlands is 20-3.

"I saw a lot of energy and focus early from the team," Wise said. "Had a few letdowns, but found ways to bounce back and play with heart and some fire. I want to see a lot of that heart on the court for our next match on Tuesday, which is our annual Cheyenne Wise Childhood Cancer Awareness match. The team will be playing in gold for the kids, and we encourage fans to also wear gold or yellow."

Union hosts Johnson on Tuesday, Sept. 24, at 6:30 p.m. in the 11th annual Cheyenne Wise Childhood Cancer Awareness Game.