FAIRMONT, W. Va. – The Frostburg State Volleyball team fell on the road 3-0 to Fairmont State Thursday evening in their regular season finale.
 
Sophomore Devin Brunk began the match with a kill, as another pair from classmate Dani Kunkle and junior Maya Johnson brought things to a 4-4 tie early on. The Fighting Falcons then took six of the next seven to build a 10-5 advantage. Frostburg wasn't able to stop the Fairmont momentum, with the hosts eventually going up by nine points before freshman Adele Evans found the floor and joined junior Grace Yocham on a block while Johnson served an ace to get within six. Still the Falcons wouldn't let up, growing the lead to double digits before putting the set away 25-15.
 
Fairmont continued their momentum into the second frame, netting the first three points and eight of the first ten to lead 8-2. The Bobcats stemmed the run on kills from Evans and Yocham, with the pair combining on another block to pull within four. After the Falcons took three of the next four, Frostburg began to turn things around, with junior Paige Mock and freshman Nevaeh Ware going for back-to-back kills, while sophomore Emery Kuebler served an ace that forced a Fairmont timeout at 12-10. The break helped reset Fairmont, as they went back up to a four-point advantage, however a combined five kills between Kunkle, Evans, and Yocham brought the Bobcats back to within 17-15. Five of the next six, however, went to the Falcons, threatening another quick set win at 22-16. Ware went for back-to-back scores, while Mock and Johnson also chipped in, pulling the score back to 23-20, but two straight attacking errors gave Fairmont the 25-20 win.
 
Seeking to put a quick end to the match, the Falcons took the first five points of the third set. Equally determined to stay alive, Frostburg battled back to within 9-8, with Ware, Johnson, and Kunkle combining for four kills. Fairmont twice tried to go on a run with back-to-back scores, but the Bobcats answered each time, with Mock and Yocham going for kills either side of senior Amanda Knieper's ace, then Kuebler serving up another while Kunkle found the floor to take a shock 14-13 lead. Ware and freshman Kylie Appleton tried to keep things going with a kill and ace, respectively, however the Falcons netted the next three to hold a one-point lead. Each side then traded runs, with a Kunkle kill, Mock ace, and Evans-Johnson block being followed by Fairmont's kill and ace for a 19-19 deadlock. Kunkle and Evans put down scores either side of a Falcon kill, pulling narrowly ahead by a point before three straight from the hosts put them up 23-21. Ware tried to keep the Bobcats alive with a kill, but the next two went to Fairmont for the 25-22 final.
 
Kunkle drove both the attack and defense on the day with a double-double of 15 digs and 10 kills, with Ware not far behind in the latter category on nine. Kuebler notched a team-high 19 assists to go with two aces, while freshman Pia White added 11 assists and seven digs.
 
With the loss, Frostburg ends the regular season 10-16 while Fairmont improves to 23-9. The Bobcats now await the results of Friday's matches to determine whether they will advance to the MEC Tournament. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.