ATHENS, Tenn.— The Montreat volleyball team captured its first Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) win of the season on Saturday with a 3-1 triumph over the Tennessee Wesleyan University Bulldogs. Thanks to the victory in Athens, Tenn., the Cavaliers improved to 3-3 (1-3 AAC) on the year.
 
Montreat overpowered the Bulldogs from the very first point in the initial set. Sprinting out to a 15-7 lead, the Cavs leaned on their attack, tallying 12 kills and a .706 hitting percentage just 22 points into the match. Six different Cavaliers recorded multiple kills in the frame, with Katie Dickey contributing four and both Destini Phifer and Shalice Lynch adding three. TWU pulled within five points late at 22-17, but back-to-back Phifer block assists helped seal the set in the visitors' favor, 25-18.
 
Tennessee Wesleyan (0-11, 0-5 AAC) capitalized on some early Montreat miscues in the second frame, winning five of the first six points and taking a 12-6 lead midway through the set. A kill from Phifer and a Lexi Wible service ace capped off a 4-0 run to pull the Cavs within 12-10, but the Bulldogs immediately answered with an 8-0 run to seize their largest lead of the frame, 20-10. Even though a 6-1 run trimmed the Montreat deficit in the closing moments, TWU leveled the match at one behind a .235 to .083 hitting percentage edge and a 25-21 second set victory.
 
Rechanneling its offensive success from the opening frame, the Montreat volleyball team relied on its attack to regain control of the match. Phifer, Alex Marsh and Lynch each finished off points to put the visitors out on the front foot early in the third frame. Kills from Dickey and Wolf later grew the Cavalier edge out to 14-7 before Tennessee Wesleyan made a run. The Bulldogs whittled the gap to 15-13 thanks to a 6-1 stretch, but Dickey capped off a long rally with a momentum-swinging kill that took the air out of TWU's balloon. Dickey sparked a 7-1 Montreat run that eventually led to a 25-19 win in the third set.
 
A pair of Lynch blocks coupled with a Dickey kill and an Abby Maldonado ace forced Tennessee Wesleyan to call a quick timeout with the visitors taking six of the initial eight points in the fourth. Wolf and Karly Horn added two kills to keep the Bulldogs at arm's length, and Dickey expanded the Cav advantage out to 16-10 with an unstoppable attack. Phifer gave the visitors their largest lead of the set at 23-15, and Montreat sealed the match with a 25-18 final frame.
 
After outhitting the hosts in three of the four sets, the Cavaliers finished the day with a .176 to .101 edge on the attack. Montreat also concluded the match with more kills (47-40) and blocks (8.0-6.0).
 
Dickey led all attackers with 16 kills, and she notched her first double-double of the year thanks to 17 digs. Wolf and Wible tied for the team lead with 19 digs, and Wolf wrapped up her afternoon with eight kills. Both Katie Alexander and Reese Davis totaled 17 assists.
 
The Montreat volleyball team concludes its 3-match road trip on Tuesday when it squares off against Columbia International University, a program currently receiving votes in the NAIA Women's Volleyball Coaches' Top 25 Poll. First serve is slated for 6:30 p.m. in Columbia, S.C.