PICTURED ABOVE: Shelby Knowles tallied 16 of Wheaton's 33 kills in a 3-0 loss to Carthage on Tuesday night.

Wheaton, Ill. - The Wheaton volleyball team fell to Carthage 3-0 on Tuesday night in the regular season finale for both teams. The Thunder proved fiesty in the match dropping closely contested sets of 25-21, 25-21 and 25-18. The loss drops Wheaton to 12-20 overall and 4-3 in the CCIW. Carthage completes a perfect run through CCIW play with the victory, going 7-0 in conference play and 32-3 overall. Wheaton has already clinched a spot in this weekend's CCIW Tournament however, their seed remains undetermined and will hinge on the outcome of Wednesday night's match between Illinois Wesleyan and Millikin.

Wheaton jumped out to a quick lead in the first set, sprinting out to a 9-5 lead, but the Lady Reds weatherred the storm and evened the set and 10-10. Carthage was extremely effective on the attack, registering a .424 hitting percentage in the first half and despite a late charge from the Thunder took set one 25-21. The Thunder took the early advantage in the second set but the Carthage block stood strong and despite Wheaton hitting their match high of .227 in the second set, the Lady Reds took the second set by a similar 25-21 score. The final set was a back-and-forth affair with Carthage taking a comfortable lead before Wheaton was able to tie the match at 15-15. The Lady Reds proved to be too much down the stretch, finishing strong by winning eight of the final nine points in the set to win 25-18.

Shelby Knowles registered 16 kills and hit a team-high .270 to lead the Thunder attack. Knowles and Andy DeMoss each had eight digs. Kelli Manning led the Thunder backline with nine digs. Alley Lindner had 15 assists while Ashley Torok had 14 assists. Knowles also led the Thunder wtih three service aces.