MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. (Sept. 20, 2014) â€" It was another five-set match and another win for the Milligan College volleyball team as the Buffaloes scored the last seven points of the match and defeated Reinhardt University 3-2 (25-27, 25-18, 24-26, 25-17, 15-6) Saturday afternoon.
 
The Buffaloes improved to 7-8 on the season while also picking up their first Appalachian Athletic Conference win to move to 1-1 in the AAC. The Buffs remained undefeated in the fifth set with a record of 3-0.
 
The Lady Eagles opened the match with a quick lead (9-2), but the Buffs would not go down easily. Behind for 46 rallies, the Buffs trailed 23-18 but clawed back, and they eventually took the lead 24-23. Two kills from the Eagles a few rallies later would stop the Buffs' chances of a comeback though, and the Eagles would take the 27-25.
 
The struggle between the Buffs and the Eagles would remain close in game two, staying within two points for over half the game. However, the Buffs charged ahead with a series of errors from the Eagles and a kill from Marissa Langford, leaving the game at 14-10. From there, the Buffs continued to increase their lead, finally taking the game 25-18.
 
Tied at one, the Buffs took an early lead (4-0), but the Eagles would not allow them to keep it long. The Buffs were the first to reach 20, but a rally from the Eagles tied the game at 24. From there, a block and an error on the Buffs gave the game to the Eagles 26-24.
 
The Eagles grabbed a 3-0 lead in game four, but a five-point run from the Buffs put them in control (5-3). The Buffs held onto their slight lead for the rest of the match, and after a four-point run from 20-16, Milligan won the game off a service error on the Eagles, 25-17.
 
For the third time this season, the Buffs were faced with a fifth set, and for the third time this season, they would prevail. As the match stood 8-6 with Milligan in the lead, a seven-point run would seal the match at 15-6, leaving the Buffs victorious once again.
 
The Buffs accumulated 52 kills in the match, putting them second overall in the conference in kills (605 total kills). Marissa Langford led the Buffs with 17 kills with Emilee Linkous and Bailey Thomas recording 10 and 9 respectively.
 
Kaitlyn Round, Heather Harvey and Jessica Davenport each scored two service aces on the day, and Linkous led the Buffs with five block assists on the 10 total that the Buffs recorded.
 
Milligan travels to Bluefield, Virginia, for their next AAC match against the Bluefield Rams on Sept. 23. They will return home for a weekend of conference play against Columbia College on Sept. 26 and St. Andrews University on Sept. 27, which will be their last home games until mid-October.