ATHENS, W. Va. – The Frostburg State Volleyball team dropped their MEC opener on the road to Concord by a 3-1 final.
 
Inspired by their home crowd, CU swiftly took a 7-1 lead to begin the match and never looked back. Junior Grace Yocham had a pair of kills hoping to end the run, but the Mountain Lions weren't slowing down, expanding the advantage to 13-4. FSU was finally able to stop the bleeding on a four-point run that included an ace from junior Paige Mock and a kill by sophomore Dani Kunkle to pull within five. Concord hit right back with five of the next six, extending their lead to nine en route to a 25-16 set victory.
 
Frostburg had a much better start to the second set, with sophomore Emery Kuebler starting things out on an ace while classmate Devin Brunk found the floor for a 4-4 tie. After an error gave CU a quick lead, Mock kicked off a five-point Bobcat run with a kill, while she also joined Brunk and graduate Brenna Siperko on a pair of blocks to take a 9-5 advantage. The sides traded points back and forth, as Concord never let FSU get too far ahead, using a kill to get within 15-13. Yocham and Mock then provided a cushion to the lead either side of an ace from redshirt senior Phoebe Lingold to move up by five. Mock then helped put the set away with a pair of kills and aces, while Siperko and Kunkle joined in to even the match with a 25-17 win.
 
As they had done in the first set, the Mountain Lions went on a couple of early runs and established a 9-4 lead to begin the third. Frostburg responded by taking six of the next seven, as Kunkle served up an ace and a kill while Yocham joined freshman Adele Evans on a block to flip the score over to an 11-10 advantage. The sides traded blows once again up to a 15-15 tie until CU took full control, going on a 10-2 run to win the set 25-17.
 
There wouldn't be much separation to begin the fourth set, as Concord looked to finish the match off while FSU attempted to force a fifth set, playing up to a 6-6 deadlock. The Mountain Lions were the first to strike, winning six of seven points to lead 12-7, then eventually commanding things up to 21-12. The Bobcats still had some fight in them, as Brunk powered the attack with a trio of kills, joined in by Evans and Mock to suddenly close the gap to 23-19. A CU kill put the hosts with five set points, however Frostburg fended off four of them off back-to-back scores from Yocham and Mock, the latter joining Siperko on a block as well. Despite getting all the way back to within a point, Concord's Chloe Thompson was able to put the match away with a kill to escape 25-23.
 
Mock led the Bobcats with an all-round performance of 12 kills, four blocks, and three aces, while Kuebler and Lingold combined for 32 assists in the effort.
 
With the loss, Frostburg drops to 4-7 overall, while CU improves to 11-1. FSU next returns to Bobcat Arena to host Point Park on Tuesday, September 30 at 7 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.