JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State volleyball team fell for the first time in four matches in a 3-0 defeat to Eastern Illinois at home on Friday night.
 
The Panthers (7-15, 2-5 OVC) held JSU (10-10, 3-4 OVC) to just a .106 attack percentage, stifling one of the top offenses in the league for three straight sets.
 
No Gamecocks managed to reach double-digit kills as junior Kaylee Fear led the way with nine kills and a .353 clip. Senior Mackenzie Rombach and redshirt-freshman Addie Halverson added seven kills apiece. Across the net, Halverson and Jade Humphrey recorded a team-high with nine digs, followed by Ashley Clingan's six. Humphrey took over for Dani Steele as the Gamecocks libero following the opening set.
 
Humphrey joined Sadie Anderson in return appearances from midseason injuries on Friday night, while junior Shayla Schmidt made her season debut after a lingering preseason injury. JSU went deep into the bench with a season-high 13 players seeing action against EIU as head coach Todd Garvey shuffled the lineup down the stretch looking for a spark.
 
A 6-1 run for EIU midway through the first propelled the Panthers to a 15-13 advantage that they would continue to build en route to a 25-20 opening frame victory. In the second, JSU cut a five-point deficit down to two at 16-14 only to see EIU take three-straight points to extend the margin to 19-14 late, and hold on for the 25-21 decision to take a commanding 2-0 match lead.
 
Trailing 19-15 in the third, JSU ran off seven consecutive points to climb ahead and force the Panthers into their own timeout. Out of EIU's break, the visitors rallied with a 5-1 run to reach match point at 24-23. JSU staved off one match point with a kill from Frear, but EIU responded to take the final two points and the match.
 
Jax State returns to Kennamer Hall for another 7 p.m. match on Saturday night against SIU Edwardsville. Admission is free to all.