Buffs drop a five-set thriller on the road in Montreat

Montreat, N.C. (October 21, 2021) — The Milligan University volleyball team fell in an exhilarating five-set match (25-22, 23-25, 22-25, 25-17, 13-15) to the Montreat Cavaliers in an AAC mathcup on Thursday night.

Milligan drops to 11-16 overall (9-8 AAC) with the loss, while Montreat moves to 10-12 (6-10 AAC) with the victory.

After going down 1-0 to begin the match, Milligan never trailed again in the set and won the first 25-20. The Buffs posted a team hitting percentage of .382 compared to Montreat's .129 was key for the Buffs as they were able to overcome three service errors to still come out on top of the Cavaliers.

Milligan found themselves trailing 22-19 in the latter stages of the second set. After a timeout by head coach Doneva Bays, the Buffs scored three consecutive points to knot the match at 22. A Milligan error followed by a Montreat kill capped off the second with a 25-23 Cavalier victory.

After Milligan climbed out to a 5-1 lead, the Cavaliers reeled off a 7-1 run to put themselves out in front of the Buffs early in the third set. After tying the match at 16 points, Milligan was unable to pull within no more than one point. Two attacking errors from the Buffalo offense late in the third lifted Montreat to a 25-22 win.

Despite going down 6-2 in the beginning of the fourth, the Buffs bounced back to control much of the set. Scoring seven of the last nine points, Milligan was able to secure a 25-17 victory to force a fifth set.

The Buffs handicapped themselves in the final set with six attacking errors. Additionally, Montreat's Kamryn Wolf proved to be too much for Milligan with a career night totaling 28 kills and a .481 hitting percentage. After a tied match 13-13 in the fifth set, Wolf knocked down the final points of the night with two kills in a row.

Carley Gregory, Ella Maiden, Elise Gregory, Abigail Byington and Sarah Grace Larkey all finished with double digit kills for the Buffs.

Kolbie Greene and Taylor Pavich finished first and second on the team in the assist category with 27 and 25.

Layla Grant and Cameron McConnell led the Milligan defense tallying 15 and 13 digs on the night.

Milligan concludes it's hone schedule Tuesday evening at the Steve Lacy Fieldhouse.