DURHAM, N.C. – The Norfolk State volleyball team saw its three-game winning streak come to an end Sunday, as North Carolina Central pulled away for a 3-1 win at McDougald-McLendon Arena. The Eagles won 26-24, 24-26, 25-17, 25-10.

The Eagles improved to 5-11, 4-3 in the MEAC while the Spartans dropped to 7-12, 3-5.

Arlanda Faulkner had 17 kills and Ammaarah Williams 13 for NCCU, which outhit the Spartans .209 to .075. Paola Matos paced NSU with 13 kills and Shonte Seale added 11.

NSU led 11-5 early in set 1, but the Eagles slowly rallied before a kill by Faulkner tied the match at 15. That was one of 11 ties in the opening set. The last of those came at 24-all after one of nine kills on the day for Spartan senior Rachel Williams. But a Spartan error and a kill by Faulkner gave NCCU the set victory.

The second set was also a back-and-forth affair. NSU scored the first four points, then the Eagles went on a 12-4 run to take a 12-8 lead. The Spartans still trailed by four, 21-17, before closing the set on a 9-3 run to even the match. Matos had two kills in the spurt before Seale closed the set with one of her own.

The Eagles, though, pulled away in the final two sets. NSU committed 10 attack errors with a .000 attack percentage in the third set, then had six errors against seven errors in the fourth set as the Eagles clinched the match. NCCU totaled 12 blocks in the match, seven by McKayla Young and six by Faulkner.

Despite the loss, NSU senior libero Nicole Rodriguez posted 27 digs, tying her career high and the ninth-most in a match in school history. Williams added a career-high 22, while Caris Cross had a double-double of 40 assists and 11 digs.

The Spartans return to Gill Gym for a 6 p.m. match Friday against Maryland Eastern Shore.