Vaughn Brewer, Sports Writer
The six-game win streak the Ram’s volleyball team was on ended Saturday afternoon in a 3-1 loss at the hands of the Golden Eagles. The Rams fell to (15-5) and (4-3) in Mountain East Conference play. The Golden Eagles improved to (10-9) and (6-1) in the MEC.
The game ended in four sets as Shepherd managed to steal the opening set 25-20 before dropping the last three. A difference from the six-game winning streak compared to Saturday’s contest was the efficiency of the Ram’s offense. The Rams had some difficulty scoring points against Charleston in key moments.
The Golden Eagles also played great defense throughout the game as shown by their 13 blocks as a team compared to Shepherd’s four.
The Rams scored a total of 68 points, just seven fewer than the Golden Eagles so the game was closer than the score may indicate.
A few notable performances from the Rams came from sophomore setter Jessica Karcz, who led in a familiar category Saturday afternoon. Karcz registered a game high 38 assists with the next closest being Charleston’s setter Chloe Massaro with 24. Karcz also tied for the team lead with 19 digs with Imani Major.
Rams senior Amanda Snowden finished with 19 kills in the losing effort, which was good enough for game high.
The longest road stretch of the season for the Rams is over as they now get to look forward to two straight home games next Friday and Saturday. Only five games remain in regular season action.
The next game for Shepherd volleyball is on Friday, Oct. 20, at 7 p.m. against Concord.
Vaughn can be reached at vbrewe01@rams.shepherd.edu