PIKEVILLE, Ky. -- Cumberland (Tenn.) outhit the University of Pikeville volleyball team .231 to .117 on its way to a 3-1 win on Saturday afternoon at UPIKE Gym.

Noelani Simpson led all players with 17 kills and Cassie Jones chipped in with eight at a .438 clip, but it wasn't enough to slow down the long Phoenix who out blocked the Bears 16-9.

Cumberland (11-6, 2-1 MSC) got six blocks and 12 kills from Masa Nalovic, while Isidora Markovic added 11 kills at a .429 hitting mark.

UPIKE (5-11, 0-3 MSC) looked good at times defensively with Brittany Reels finding 22 digs and Amari Eadie sending back four blocks, but the offense just never clicked consistently and 10 service errors slowed them down as well.

Savanna Zakman had a match-high 31 assists, but other than Simpson and Jones, five kills from Katie Slone was the most for any other player.

The Phoenix led by as many as 11 points at 19-8 in the opening set, but credit UPIKE for going on a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to five. Still down five at 23-18, the Bears added a 3-0 mini run to make things interesting, but the final two points went the Phoenix's way.

After a brief 2-2 tie in the second set, Cumberland went on to lead by as many as 11 points at 22-11 before winning 25-16 on a Markovic kill. The tide turned in the third set as UPIKE put together a gaudy .324 hitting performance (16-34, 5 errors) on its way to a 25-20 win.

The Bears led 20-13 before giving up four straight points, but still recovered enough to get on the board with two straight kills by Simpson to end it.

The success, however, was brief as the Phoenix jumped out to an 8-1 lead in the fourth set and never looked back. UPIKE did get as close as 13-9, but that prompted a 6-0 Cumberland run and after that a kill by Markovic closed the door on a match-deciding 25-12 set.

UP NEXT

UPIKE faces Campbellsville in a Mid-South Conference road matchup at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

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