BOILING SPRING, N.C. – The Lady Eagles were held to a negative hitting percentage as host Gardner-Webb University handed the North Carolina Central University volleyball team its fourth consecutive straight-set loss on Tuesday.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs cruised to a 25-10 win in the first set and then completed the sweep with a pair of matching 25-17 sets. Gardner-Webb (11-12) ended a six-match losing streak in completing the season series sweep of NCCU (3-12).
 
NCCU HIGHLIGHTS & STATS:
Senior Casey Curran and Kelsey Murphy accounted four nine of the Lady Eagles' season-low 16 team kills. Curran paced NCCU with five spikes and Murphy logged four kills.
 
Junior setter Paige Phillips chipped in 13 kills and seven digs. Sophomore libero Bree Simmons tallied a team-high 10 digs. Murphy and Curran followed with six and five digs, respectively.
 
GARDNER-WEBB HIGHLIGHTS & STATS:
Junior Nicole Celarek led the victors with 12 kills on 25 attempts and a .280 hitting percentage.
 
Sophomore setters Amanda Sahm and Tinsley Fain recorded 22 and 16 assists, correspondingly.
 
Freshman libero Emma Milstead led the Runnin' Bulldogs defensive efforts with 20 digs.
 
SET-BY-SET:
1ST: GWU hit .321 in the first set and never trailed on its way to the 15-point win. Freshman Molly Johnston connected for four of her nine kills in the opener.
 
2ND: A Curran kill on the opening point of the set gave NCCU its first lead, but it was short lived as the Runnin' Bulldogs went on an ensuing 9-3 run to take control. GWU maintained a sizable advantage from that point to take the commanding 2-nil advantage.
 
3RD: NCCU's second and final lead came on a Curran ace at 2-1. GWU rattled off the next five points to once again regain control. Three kills by sophomore Whitney White kept the Lady Eagles close at 10-6, but a 9-1 surge ended any thoughts of a visitor comeback.
 
OTHER NOTES, STATS & FACTS:
Gardner-Webb remained perfect against NCCU at 7-0 since the Lady Eagles joined the NCAA Division I ranks in 2007.
 
UP NEXT:
NCCU returns to Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) play at home on Friday against archrival North Carolina A&T State University at 6 p.m. For more information, fans are encouraged to visit www.NCCUEaglePride.com.