COLUMBIA, S.C.— Montreat's women's volleyball team made its third consecutive trip to Columbia, S.C. in less than a week for another Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) matchup against the Columbia College Koalas (6-19, 5-13 AAC). The four-set contest gave the Cavs (8-6, 8-6 AAC) their first win since Oct. 15.
 
After dropping the first point in the match, the Cavaliers started out hot with a 5-0 run courtesy of two kills from sophomore Elizabeth Harrington. The home team rallied back to make the score 10 all. Another Montreat spurt forced a timeout from the Koalas at 15-11. The rest of the set was back-and-forth. Columbia started to gain some momentum down the stretch with a 4-1 run, but it wasn't enough as Reese Davis slammed the door on set one with her second kill of the frame to end it 25-20.
 
The previous frame set up a wild second set. It started the exact opposite as the first with Davis finding her third kill of the match. The Koalas were on the positive end of a 5-0 run this time. Montreat then had to fight back to bring its deficit to 15-11. Davis found her stride with two service aces that sparked a 6-0 stretch for the Cavs and forced a timeout from the home team. A continued competitive stretch from both sides brought the score to 24 apiece. The Koalas scored the next point to have the advantage, but the Cavs responded with two consecutive kills from Harrington as they suddenly had set point in their hands. The same process repeated itself two more times until Montreat finalized the marathon of a set 31-29.
 
Frame number three kept the crowd engaged as there were eight different ties in the set. At 17-17, the visitors fought on to be ahead 24-20 thanks to kills from the three-headed monster of the Cavalier attack: Davis, Harrington and Karly Horn; however, the hosts fended off four consecutive match points and won set three, 26-24, after four attack errors from the Cavs.
 
With the concluding set tied at 10, Montreat scored eight of the next 11 points. The run was highlighted by Davis and Harrington again, each with a kill, and Davis adding an ace to her total of six on the night. Alex James also chimed in with her own solo block to add to the fun. The Cavs were not done there as Horn turned up the heat at the end, scoring three crucial kills and the final point with a stylish service ace. The visitors concluded the match by winning the last set 25-18.

"The team's collective hard work was clear today," said head coach Cristina Viera. "We stayed aggressive and fought together from point one to match point."
 
The Cavs put on a show at their home away from home. Harrington had herself a day by putting the Cavaliers back in the win column with a career-high 15 kills. Adding to that, her three solo blocks shut down the Koalas' offense. Two other Cavs found themselves with double-digit kills. Horn notched 13 while Davis ended with 11. Katie Alexander finished the night with 25 assists and six digs. Cate Hale led the Cavaliers defensively with 17 digs of her own.
 
As a team, Montreat owned the serving game with 11 total service aces to Columbia's seven. The Cavs also led the Koalas in kills (44-41) and assists (39-37). Columbia, however, led the match with the most digs (54-47) and blocks (5-4).
 
Up next, the Cavs look forward to their first game in November as they will travel to Johnson University in Knoxville, Tenn. this Friday.