ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. - The NC Wesleyan College Volleyball team battled hard but dropped both conference matches to Averett and Methodist on Senior Day on Satruday afternoon in Rocky Mount.

AU 3, NCWC 1

Averett (12-11, 9-1) won the first two sets from the Bishops 25-17 and 25-23 before Wesleyan came back to dominate set three 25-14 on 12 kills hitting .305. Averett, though, would put the match away in the fourth set taking it 25-21.

Sophomore right side Sydney Barnwell led the Bishops with 11 kills hitting .375 with two blocks and 2 digs while junior OH CallIe Cline also added 8 kills and 19 digs hitting .350 with an ace and an assist in the defeat.

Senior setter Haileigh Riesenbeck led with 23 assists in her final home game while adding 8 digs and a team-best 3 aces. Fellow senior, middle Hannah Thrasher also added 6 kills with 3 digs, 3 assisted blocks, and 2 aces. Senior setter Kelly Ammons also assisted on 11 kills with an ace and 4 digs while freshman RS Aubrey Nicholson and sophomore MB Lauren Weaver combined for 9 kills and 4 blocks.

MU 3, NCWC 2

A thrilling final match ensued between nearby rivals Methodist and Wesleyan as this match would stretch to five sets. Wesleyan won the first set in dominating fashion 25-14 hitting .222 on 11 kills. Wesleyan would then get off to another fast start in set two leading 10-6 and 18-13 before MU rallied back to tie the match at 23-all. After a Bijou Patel kill for the Bishops to give them a 24-23 lead, consecutive errors from the Bishops would give the Monarchs the set point as they would go on to steal the set 26-24.

Wesleyan then squeaked out another tight third set 25-21 on 14 kills to take a 2-1 lead in the match. Unfortunately, the Bishops would seemingly run out of steam after that as MU would get off to a quick start in set four and cruise to the 25-9 win. The Bishops would then rally to tie the fifth set at 5-all, but MU turned it up a notch and would go on a 10-0 run to end the match 15-5.

Barnwell again led the Bishops with 14 kills hitting .143 with 2 blocks and 4 digs while Cline added 7 kills and a team-high of 23 digs. Thrasher also posted 5 kills with 2 aces, 3 digs, and 2 blocks while fellow middle, Weaver, had 4 kills, 6 blocks and 3 digs.

Riesenbeck also played well adding 2 kills, 25 assists, 2 aces, and 8 digs while libero Sam Butensky also added 21 digs.

Wesleyan falls to 9-16 overall and 4-7 in the East Division while Methodist improved to 4-15 and 3-8. The Bishops next return to action on Tuesday when they head to Raleigh to battle Meredith College at 7 PM.