ATLANTA - The Georgia State volleyball team fell in its home opener 3-0 to UAB Tuesday night. Sophomore Dede Bohannon led the Panthers with 17 kills and 10 digs. 

The Blazers defeated the Panthers for the third straight meeting 26-24, 25-23 and 25-12. Sara Rishell led the Blazers with 17 kills, followed by Sam Skinner with 10. 

Georgia State had set points in the highly contested first set at 24-22, but attacking errors by the Panthers brought the set to 24-all. The Blazers then won the next two points to squeak out the opening set.

The second set was just as tight as the first, with teams trading the lead back and forth. Georgia State outhit UAB .244 percent .179, yet less errors by the Blazers ultimately led to UAB taking a 2-0 lead at the break.

"In the first two sets, we attacked well," head coach Tami Audia said. "The defense did what we had planned. UAB is a very good offensive team and we were able to contain them. We had chances to win, but just weren't able to."

The third set was all UAB. The Blazers rushed out to an 11-3 lead and never looked back. The Panthers struggled to find their way in the third set and lost 25-12.

"Our attacking wasn't as strong in the third set as it had been," Audia said. "Against a team like that we have to make adjustment and attack throughout the entire match, which didn't happen."

Bohannon hit .316 percent on 38 attempts. She ended the night with 17 kills. Sydney Hunsley added in another 10 to Georgia State's 39 kill total, one better than UAB's 38. However, the Blazers outhit the Panthers .225 percent to .103. 

The Panthers will have more chances this week to add to their win column, with Clemson coming into the GSU Sports Arena Thursday night and hosting the Georgia State Invitational Friday and Saturday.

The Panthers and the Tigers will tip off at 7 p.m. Thursday night. As always, admission is free. Live stats will be available on GeorgiaStateSports.com.