NC State was defeated by Georgia 3-1 on the road in Athens, Georgia in its first match of the ACC vs SEC Challenge.

After winning the second set 25-20, the Wolfpack (4-6) could not use its momentum gained to push through in the next two sets.

Junior Melissa Evans led the Wolfpack up front against the Bulldogs (7-3), with 17 kills and four block assists. Another standout performer was redshirt freshmen Nina Sharpton, who led the team with 24 assists on the night.

Georgia was led offensively by Kacie Evans who had 16 kills and Meghan Donovan who had a staggering 44 assists in the match.

Georgia came out firing in the first set, completely dominating the Wolfpack with a 25-14 win. Attack errors hurt NC State in the opening set, as it had seven compared to Georgia’s three. 

NC State did not back down though after faltering in the first set, as it came back strong in the second set with a 25-20 win. In this set, the Wolfpack had six blocks and 10 kills. To take home this set, NC State ended on 13-2 run, seeming to find some weaknesses in the way Georgia played.

After flipping the momentum back into its favor, NC State could not pull through in the third set losing 25-15. Georgia almost doubled NC State’s kills in this set, having 12 to NC State’s seven.

In the fourth and final set, NC State battled but ultimately lost marginally 25-20. Attack errors hurt NC State again as the team had nine compared to Georgia’s four.

NC State will be back in action for its second and final match of the ACC vs SEC Challenge Saturday in Athens, Georgia against Arkansas with a 4 p.m. start time.