MONTREAT, N.C.— Playing for the second time during Homecoming & Family Weekend, the Montreat volleyball team put its perfect record to the test on Saturday with an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) matchup against the Tennessee Wesleyan University Bulldogs. Behind an attack that seemingly got better as the contest moved along, the Cavaliers captured a four-set win to improve to 5-0 (5-0 AAC) for the first time since at least 2004.
 
Montreat capitalized on Tennessee Wesleyan's (6-9, 3-2 AAC) least efficient attacking frame of the day. The Bulldogs hit .000 in the set, thanks in large part to a trio of blocks that each featured Elizabeth Harrington defensively. The hosts led 10-2 right out of the gate, and they maintained that edge all the way to 25-20.
 
While the attack struggled in set one, the Bulldogs' offense came to life in set two. Fifteen kills and a .278 hitting percentage aided the visitors, who led by as many as six points on three separate occasions, to a 25-19 frame score that evened the match at 1-1.
 
Harrington, Reese Davis and Karly Horn notched kills early in the third set, and Horn partnered with Shalice Lynch on back-to-back blocks to push Montreat ahead, 11-5. TWU didn't go away easily, however, as it stormed back to force a pair of set points. Horn and Davis ended the third set the way they started it, though, helping cap off a 3-0 run that gave the home team the upper hand, 27-25.
 
Sensing a chance to put the game away, the Cavs brought the intensity in the fourth. As a team, Montreat tallied 19 kills and a .310 hitting percentage to close out the match, 25-20. Half of Kamryn Wolf's eight fourth-set kills came early on, and Katie Alexander wrapped up the contest with a kill of her own.
 
"Despite being tired from yesterday's game, the team stayed focused and gave everything on the court," said head coach Cristina Viera. "I'm proud of the determination and heart we showed today."
 
The Cavaliers closed out the day with advantages in kills (57-48), blocks (12-10), assists (54-46) and hitting percentage (.194 to .153). Wolf registered team-highs in kills (20) and aces (4), while Alexander and Cate Hale led the squad in assists (27) and digs (16), respectively. Harrington totaled a 13-kill, nine-block afternoon. Davis utilized 21 assists and a career-best 11 kills for her double-double.
 
Montreat continues its four-match homestand on Tuesday when it hosts the 23^rd-ranked Columbia International University Rams in AAC play. First serve is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. inside McAlister Gymnasium.