CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Western Carolina had four players finish with seven or more kills as the Catamounts secured a 3-0 sweep of Mercer on Sunday afternoon at the Ramsey Regional Activity Center. The Catamounts won by scores of 25-13, 26-24, and 25-20 to sweep the Bears for the first time with both teams belonging to the Southern Conference.

WCU evens its overall record at 7-7 and improves to 7-5 in the Southern Conference. Mercer, which entered the match having won nine straight, falls to 10-6 and 9-2.

Julia Gardon and Merry Gebel led the Catamount offense with eight kills each. Madison McNally had a season-high seven kills along with Haley Multerer. Hannah Price had a match-best 30 assists while Destinee Dorsey had a team-best 20 digs. Eden Punch swatted away a career-high four total blocks including three solo blocks.

Reigning SoCon Offensive Player of the Week Annie Karle led Mercer with 13 kills followed by Taylor Lynch with 10. Malia Randolph had 20 assists while Megan Smith led the Bears with 15 digs.

Holding a 6-5 lead in the opening set, the Catamounts went on a 7-1 run as a Mercer error gave the Catamounts a 13-6 lead. WCU led by no fewer than six points for the rest of the set as a Gardon kill wrapped up the frame for a 1-0 Catamount advantage.

A tightly contested second set featured seven lead changes and 15 ties with the largest lead being four points. After the Catamounts pulled ahead 12-8, Mercer battled back to knot the score at 13 after a block. The Bears led 19-17 after a Karle kill before the Catamounts tied the stanza at 20. A Lynch kill gave the Bears set point but WCU tied the set at 24 with a Gebel kill before two straight Mercer errors closed out the set and gave the Catamounts a 2-0 lead in the match.

With the third set tied at 3, Mercer used a 4-0 run for a 7-4 advantage. The Bears led 11-8 thanks to a Lynch kill before the Catamounts used a 9-1 run capped by a Price kill for a 17-12 lead. Mercer cut the WCU lead to two points on two occasions but the Catamounts fended off the Bears with three straight points for a 23-18 lead and clinched the match with a McNally kill.

Three of Western Carolina's four seniors – Madison McNally, Caroline Perret, and Hannah Price – were honored in a special pre-match ceremony on Sunday afternoon. WCU's fourth senior, MaKenzie White, who was not available for Sunday's match, is scheduled to be honored in a special pre-match ceremony in WCU's home finale against Wofford on Thursday, March 25.

WCU goes for the series sweep on Monday at 5 p.m. The match will be streamed on ESPN+ (paid subscription required).

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