Game three was the turning point of the match.

After the match had been tied at 16-16, Morehead State went on a 14-1 run and though game four ended up close (30-28), the Panthers were never able to regain their original momentum.

The Eagles defeated Eastern in four games (20-30, 30-22, 30-17 and 30-28) Saturday at Lantz Arena.

Sophomore middle hitter Amber Campbell ensured the Eagles (6-0, 17-5 Ohio Valley Conference) would not see a game five or an upset after she hammered down a kill against the Panthers.

Though Eastern had been able to come out strong in the first game winning convincingly 30-22, they had been overtaken with runs of points in games two and three.

The fifth game, which Campbell ensured would not materialize, was something none of the Eagles wanted to see, including their head coach Jaime Gordon.

“(Eastern) fought back in the fourth game,” Gordon said. “We couldn’t let them come back and force a game five. In game five, anything can happen.”

Gordon also said his team overall was able to overcome some of its early mistakes in game one and that his team’s “chemistry” was key to the Eagles prevailing.

He also said it was about keeping up pressure on the Panthers (1-6, 8-8).

“We put a lot of pressure on them and that gave us momentum going into the (second) match,” Gordon said.

Campbell also said it was the pressure that helped the team and the momentum they got from it was key to the victory.

“(Volleyball) is all about momentum,” Campbell said. “We kept the up the pressure and kept playing hard.”

Freshman outside hitter Kaitlin Craven also attributed the win to their serving and their lack of errors.

Gordon said he never thought they had the Panthers beat until the match was over.

“EIU runs a very fast offense and they do a good job at closing the end of games,” Gordon said.

Eastern head coach Lori Bennett said she was disappointed that her team had lost the match.

“We just lost our composure a bit today, especially in game three,” Bennett said. “We had too many unforced errors. Instead of putting ourselves in a position to score we let Morehead take advantage.”

Bennett, though disappointed, still found a lot of highlights from her team’s performance, including the way they were able to maintain their high-level of play from their previous match Friday night against Eastern Kentucky (0-6, 1-15).

The Panthers swept EKU in three games and snapped their six-match losing streak in the OVC.

“I don’t think we did a great job blocking today,” Bennett said. “But our defense is steadily improving.”

Bennett also said her team did a good job of “battling back” and the end of games.

She acknowledged the play of senior outside hitter Eliza Zwettler as one of the best performers for the Panthers on the day.

“I think Eliza did a good job with her composure like last night,” Bennett said.

Zwettler herself thought it was frustrating to lose the match, but said she seen many positive things as well.

“We got back to fundamentals,” Zwettler said. “It always sucks to lose, but to come out and play they ways we did.was encouraging.”

Zwettler finished the match with 22 kills and 13 digs, her 10th double-double of the season. Her freshman sister Alex notched her 11th double-double of the season with 10 kills and 18 digs. Alex also had 4 serving aces as well. Freshman outside hitter Kelsey Orr had 11 kills and 14 digs.

On the Eagles side, freshman Kaitlin Craven had 20 kills with seven digs and Campbell had 13 kills.

The Panthers will hit the road for four consecutive matches, playing next against Tennessee-Martin in a rematch on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Amy Sesol, sophmore middle blocker, spikes the ball against Morehead State, Saturday afternoon in Lantz Arena. The Patherns lost 3-1. Karla Browning/The Daily Eastern News

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