ST. DAVIDS, Pa. – Eastern University Women's Volleyball stayed unbeaten in the MAC Freedom with a five-set win over the visiting Misericordia University Cougars (12-8, 1-1) Caroline Shelby led the rally for the Eagles with 23 kills.

How It Happened:
The Eagles needed an incredible rally to stave off elimination to end the fourth set. Eastern won the opening set, but the Cougars won the next two and held a 24-20 edge in the fourth. The Eagles fought off three match points and Cecilia Bauer served for four points to put the Eagles up 25-24. Hannah Picconi had a huge solo block to cut the Misericordia lead to 24-23. Ally Spillane then tied the set with a decisive swing from the right side. Shelby put the Eagles up.

After the Cougars earned a side-out, the Eagles had another set point chance on a service error. Picconi and Shelby combined on a block to send the match to a decisive fifth set.

The Eagles grabbed the early lead with Morgan Kline at the service line. After Shelby put the Eagles up 3-1, Kline delivered a pair of aces for a 5-1 lead.

Though their edge shrank, the Eagles held the lead to 14-12, but the Cougars scored two in a row to tie the score. Shelby delivered her a final kill of the match, a hard swing off the block that went just out of bounds on the far side of the court, to give the Eagles match point. She then served the final point for a 16-14 win.

The Eagles cruised to a 25-17 win in the opening set. Bauer had four kills on six swings and Shelby had five as the Eagles never trailed.

After dropping the opening set, the Cougars served aggressively and found their offensive rhythm. They hit .316, and the Eagles hit a negative number on the way to a 25-18 win in the second. The visitors did not slow down with a .297 hitting percentage to take a 25-19 win in the second set.

The Cougars hit .300 and Eastern hit .297 in the fourth. With Spillane putting down four kills on five swings and Shelby delivering five kills on seven attacks the Eagles hit .389 in the final set.

Katie Stenby led the Eastern defense with 18 digs. Bauer added 11 and Shelby had ten. Ashley Thirsted posted a career high 29 assists. Kline had 16 assists and six aces.

Coach Birtwistle Says:
"It comes down to execution. We had some rough stretches where we were not able to pick things up with our defense, but in the key moments, we made big plays. With the match on the line, Cecilia served for five in a row. Caroline and Ally came up with some huge kills. Katie had a couple really key digs. You can go down the list. We were able to execute in the critical moments of the game and we were able to earn the win."

"Misericordia is a much improved team and we knew they were going to come in and serve tough. We struggled with our passing through the middle part of the game and we made some unforced errors. I am very pleased that we were able to pick up the win and get through the first two games of the league schedule with two wins."

Up Next:
The Eagles play three matches at Elizabethtown College on Friday and Saturday. They will play Marywood on Friday at 6 pm on Friday and Baldwin Wallace and Elizabethtown College on Saturday.