BOONE, N.C.—The Bellarmine Knights opened play in Appalachian State's Mountaineer Classic with a straight sets (22-25, 19-25, 18-25) loss to Wake Forest on Friday afternoon.
 
The Demon Deacons stormed back from an early first set deficit and never looked back as they outhit the Knights in every set to own a .358 to .189 hitting percentage advantage for the match.
 
Bellarmine was led by juniors Jayme Scott and Ashley Price with 12 and 11 kills respectively.  Price was the Knights' most effective hitter, posting a .318 attack percentage. Setter Emily Arnold, who dished out 31 assists, also was effective in her seven attacks, totaling thee kills on the day.
 
Wake Forest countered with a balanced attack that saw five players with eight or more kills.  Kamryn Malloy and Ashley Slater led the way with 10 apiece.  Andrea Fuentes, who ranks in the NCAA's top five for assists per set, had another good match, doling out 40 assists in the three-set match.
 
Defensively, Bellarmine libero Anna Lococo tied Wake Forest's Peyton Suess for match-high honors in digs with 16. The Demon Deacons owned a 6-4 advantage in blocks with Seville Gates leading the Knights with two solo rejections.
 
Wake Forest, out of the Atlantic Coast Confernce (ACC), improves to 5-2 on the season while the Knights slip to 1-5 on the year.
 
Bellarmine returns to action in the Mountaineer Classic tomorrow with matches against host Applachian State at 12:30 p. m. and the Charlotte 49ers at 4 p.m.