Gorham, ME -  The Husson Eagles women's volleyball team had already faced the University of Southern Maine Huskies twice this season coming into Thursday's tilt, with USM prevailing both times via hard-fought four-set victories.

The third time would not prove to be a charm for the Eagles, as the Huskies would yet again come away with a four-set win (25-8, 25-18, 22-25, 25-20).

The Huskies were impressive offensively, as they put away 14 kills as a team in games one, two, and four, and also tallied 18 aces as a team in the match.  

Husson was able to notch 14 kills of their own in the third game, but receiving errors (18) and service errors (7) would prove to be their undoing for the night.  

"Tonight we had a very slow start," Husson coach Jodie Fairbank assessed after the match.  "We started to show some fire in the second, and we took the third with our aggressive team play.  We fell short at the end of the fourth.  Service errors were a big factor in game four."

Amanda Keppel led the Huskies with 14 kills and 13 digs, while Kristina Rubico and Jessica Garrett each had 10 kills of their own.  

Kelsey Abramson posted six of the USM's 18 aces, while Megan Nilson dished out an astounding 40 assists.  

Husson was led by Lindsey Chapman (Gorham, ME) with 10 kills, while Autumn Wilber (Tuftonboro, NH) and Emma Plouffe (Frankfort, NY) each added four.  

"We moved Emma to opposite (right-side hitter) and it proved effective," Fairbank said.  "She took on the role and had a standout game with it."

Casey Lopes (New Bedford, MA) narrowly missed another double-double, as she passed around 16 assists and picked up nine digs for the Eagles.  

USM improves to 17-5 with the victory, while Husson slips to 8-15.  

The Eagles will have the coming weekend off, as their next match will be back at home at the Newman Gymnasium next Tuesday night, October 15, against North Atlantic Conference rival Maine Maritime Academy.  Match time is set for 7 p.m.