FAIRMONT, West Virginia - With the regular season finishing up in the coming weeks, the Salem volleyball team headed up to Fairmont State this evening to take on the Falcons for the second time this season. Unfortunately, Salem came up with another tough road defeat at the hands of the Falcons. 

In the first set, the Tigers got things going quickly, and grinded out an early 12-9 lead thanks to a 7 point run with Noemi Combi at the service line. From there, it was a back and forth contest, but a late Falcon surge ended the set at 25-19 favoring Fairmont State. 

For the next set, Salem had a tough time getting the offensive attack going. The Falcons jumped out to a big lead early, but the Tigers pushed back with a few key plays from Tahnee Gerard and Hailey Haynes. It would not be enough for Salem to get back into it, and the Tigers conceded set 2 25-8.

For the final set, the offensive woes continued for the Tigers. Therefore, Fairmont State controlled the contest, and Salem had to throw everything they had to battle back into the match. Makenna Long and Sydney Kopshina made an impact on the Tigers comeback bid, but it was too little too late. The Falcons took set 3 25-15, and therefore the contest 3-0. 

Statistically, Salem was led offensively  by 6 kills from Noemi Combi. Defensively, Valentina Poti tallied up 8 digs in the contest. Kaie Kennedy also contributed 11 assists in the match. 

Despite the loss, the Tigers will have a couple more opportunities to get back on track before the conclusion of the 2024 regular season. Next up, they will head up to Wheeling to take on the Cardinals on November 12th at 7 PM.