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MARTIN, Tenn. – Eastern Kentucky lost a five-set battle against Tennessee-Martin on Saturday. The Colonels (2-12, 1-4 OVC) held a 2-1 lead but couldn’t hold off the Skyhawk (4-12, 2-2 OVC) comeback.

Lindsey Loescher led Eastern with a match-high 18 kills and added nine digs. Senior Amanda Wilson contributed 14 kills and three blocks. Kate Hendle totaled 44 assists.

Taylor Noland led UT Martin with 17 kills. Britany Wilburn added 15.

An attack error by UTM gave Eastern Kentucky a 10-6 lead in the first set. Another Skyhawk attack error kept EKU out in front 12-9. Back-to-back kills by Noland followed by a Colonel attack error put Tennessee-Martin on top 13-12. Hendle’s kill from a setting position put Eastern back in the lead 15-14.

Another attack error by the Skyhawks gave Eastern Kentucky a 20-17 advantage. The Colonels edged out ahead 23-21 on a kill by Wilson, but EKU did not score another point in the first set. UTM scored the final four points, three off of Eastern errors, to take the first set by a score of 25-23.

Back-to-back attack errors by Loescher put Tennessee-Martin in front 5-2 early in the second set. A kill by Loescher followed by a Skyhawk attack error gave the Colonels a 7-6 lead. They did not trail again the rest of the set. Wilson’s kill put the visitors in front by five, 13-8. A kill by Loescher kept EKU out in front by four, 18-14. A UTM ball handling error followed by a kill from Bridget Mustard gave Eastern Kentucky set-point. Three plays later, the set ended 25-20 in favor of Eastern on a Skyhawk service error, tying the match at 1-1.

The Colonels rebounded from a .070 attack percentage in the first set to hit .308 in the second set. Tennessee-Martin improved from .111 to .270, cutting the number of errors in half in the second set.

Eastern Kentucky never trailed in the third set, on its way to taking a 2-1 lead. Mustard scored the first point of the set with a kill. After the Skyhawks tied it at 1-1, Loescher’s kill put the Colonels on top for good. Another Loescher kill made it 15-8. Kills by Wilson and Hannah Groudle extended the lead to 23-12. Groudle’s kill gave EKU set-point at 24-15. UTM scored four straight points but Nicole Mulhallended the set, 25-19, with a kill.

The Colonels committed only three errors in the third set, hitting .346.

The Skyhawks turned the tables on Eastern in the fourth set. UTM came out and grabbed the lead first and never trailed in the set. After Loescher tied the score at 5-5, UT Martin scored four straight points as part of a 10-1 run that gave the home squad a 15-6 advantage. Ashley Doherty’s kill made it 20-11. Wilburn brought Tennessee-Martin to set-point, 24-17. Two plays later an EKU service error ended the set, 25-18, and allowed the Skyhawks to tie the match at 2-2.

UT Martin posted a .308 attack percentage in the fourth set, compared to Eastern’s .031 hitting percentage.

In the decisive fifth set, the Skyhawks broke an 8-8 tie with a 3-0 run to move in front 11-8. The Colonels answered with five straight points of their own to move back on top 13-11. UTM answered with the final run of the match, scoring four straight to take the set, 15-13, and the match 3-2. Noland scored the final two points with a pair of kills.

The Colonels will play their next four matches at home, beginning with weekend contests against Tennessee Tech on Friday at 7 p.m., and Jacksonville State on Saturday.