SCORE
Armstrong State 3, Montevallo 1 (13-25, 17-25, 25-22, 18-25)
RECORDS
Montevallo (12-7 overall, 4-2 in Peach Belt Conference)
Armstrong State (10-4 overall, 6-0 in Peach Belt Conference)
LOCATION
The Aquatics and Recreation Center (Savannah, Ga.)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Armstrong State started the opening set with a 5-1 run. The Falcons responded with a 7-4 run of their own and were able to close the deficit to 9-8 following a kill by sophomore Kristy Bohan. However, the Pirates closed the frame with a commanding 16-5 run to clinch a 25-13 win in the opening set.
Montevallo kept the margin close early in the second set, with a kill by senior Rebekah Phelps trimming the Pirates' lead to 5-4. Armstrong State then went on a 5-0 run and led by as many as eight points down the stretch before capturing a 25-17 win in the set.
The Falcons didn't give up, fighting back to win the third set, which marked their first victory over the Pirates in a set on the road in Savannah, Georgia in five years.
The Pirates led 5-2 early in the set before Montevallo went on a 8-4 run to take their first lead in the frame, 10-9, following a kill by Phelps. The Falcons extended their lead to 12-10 before a 5-0 run by Armstrong State gave the Pirates a 15-12 advantage. Montevallo used a 4-0 run late in the frame, fueled with three errors by the Pirates, to take a lead they wouldn't relinquish down the stretch on its way to a 25-22 win in the set.
Montevallo opened the fourth set with a 5-3 run, capped with a kill by junior Chandler Cooper and an error by the Pirates. A kill by senior Nicole Holton gave the Falcons a 8-7 advantage, which unfortunately marked their final lead in the frame. Armstrong State reeled off a 10-3 run and held off the Falcons down the stretch to clinch the match with a 25-18 win in the set.
STAT OF THE MATCH
Armstrong State registered 10 service aces against the Falcons, who finished with just one service ace in the match.
BEYOND THE NUMBERS
Phelps paced the Falcons with 11 kills and 12 digs, leading the team in both categories, as she posted her fifth double-double of the season. The Huntsville, Alabama native registered a .320 hitting percentage in the match.
Senior Carissa Bell registered 10 digs in the match. The reigning co-Libero of the Year in the Peach Belt Conference has recorded double-digit digs in 12 of the last 13 matches for the Falcons and has reached the double-digit mark in 16 of their 19 matches this season.
With the Falcons' win in the third set, Montevallo claimed just its fourth victory in a set on the road against the Pirates since joining the Peach Belt Conference in 2009.
UP NEXT
Montevallo will continue a weekend on the road in Peach Belt Conference play Saturday afternoon with a match at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida. First serve is set for 2 p.m. Eastern/1 p.m. Central.
