On the weekend of October 9-10, the Montreat College Volleyball Team travelled to Asbury College in Wilmore, KY for the Asbury College Volleyball Invitational. The team kicked off its weekend by playing against Madonna University on Friday. The Lady Cavaliers played their hardest but were unable to overcome the tough competition and lost the match without a single set to their name.If the team was discouraged by the loss, they didn't allow it to show in their following match two hours later against host Asbury College. Although Asbury won the first set 14-25, the Cavs squeaked by with a 30-28 win in the second. After such a close set, Head Coach Christine Mooberry encouraged the team to "tighten up the defense." There was excellent defensive play from Anna Stephenson and Hannah Bostic during the final two sets, and the team was able to comfortably win them and finish the match 3-1.

Despite a long travel day and two hard matches on Friday, the team managed a great level of effort on the court early Saturday, looking to improve on the split results of the previous day's matches.  And it was clear that this renewed concentration paid off when, led by striking offensive performances from Allie Baumgartner, Alyssa Kaufman, and Anna Stephenson, the team walked off of the court at the end of the match with a 3-0 victory secured against Pikeville.

The final game of the invitational pitted the Lady Cavaliers against Lindsey Wilson College.  Inspired by their solid victory against Pikeville two hours earlier, the team played a sensational game, winning the first set 25-21 and charging through the remaining two sets to finish the match with a 3-0 result - their second of the day.  Contributing to the team's achievement of winning their final nine sets of the weekend were, among others, Ellen Goodman's 10 kills, 2 aces, 16 digs, and 2 solo blocks, Lyndsey Wall's 15 assists and 2 aces, and Liz Huitron's 2 aces and 13 digs.

Even though the first match of the weekend had been a tough loss, the mood was altogether positive as the team reversed that defeat and travelled home with three consecutive victories. Now sporting a 19-11 overall record, the volleyball team eyes an even more daunting - and exciting - challenge ahead.

Next up for the team is the Big Guns Classic, slated for October 16-17 in Joliet, Illinois and featuring strong opposition.  Coach Mooberry stated, "we have to work hard and demonstrate the same level of effort as we showed last weekend if we want to be victorious in the upcoming matches in Illinois."