Pirates Fall To Eagles In Three

Friday, August 25

Statesboro, Ga.

6:00 p.m.

East Carolina University

1-1,0-0AAC

Georgia Southern

1-0,0-0Sun Belt

East Carolina

Ga. Southern

August 25, 2023 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

STATESBORO, Ga. – East Carolina lost for the first time in 2023 Friday night, dropping a 3-0 (16-25, 24-26, 23-25) decision to Georgia Southern inside Hanner Fieldhouse.

The Pirates (1-1) could not contain the efficient Eagle (1-0) offense in the end as Georgia Southern fired at a .234 clip and held ECU to a .125 percentage. The Eagles also held the upper hand in kills (44-31), digs (51-44), total blocks (7.0-6.0) and service aces (4-2). The Pirates hit below .100 in the first and third stanzas.

Reagan Barth led the home side and all players with 15 kills and a .256 hitting percentage while Brittany Wood and Izzy Marinelli posted eight kills apiece for East Carolina. Tia Shum paced the Pirate defense with 11 digs to go along with a 15-assist performance by Payton Evenstad.

Georgia Southern raced out to an early lead in the contest by winning the opening set by nine. East Carolina held a 23-20 advantage late in the second frame, but the Eagles mustered up a 6-1 run to eke out the two-point victory and head into intermission up 2-0 in the match. Georgia Southern finished the job in the third, holding off a late charge by the Pirates to seal the sweep by two points.

Up Next: East Carolina closes out its opening weekend of play Saturday with a rematch against UNC Greensboro. First serve is set for Noon.