KINGSPORT, Tenn. (November 11, 2021) — The Milligan University volleyball team fell to No. 1 seed Bryan College in the quarterfinals of the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) tournament Thursday afternoon. The Buffs lost in three sets (25-18, 25-14, 25-16) to the regular season AAC champions.
The Buffs conclude the 2021 season with a final record of 14-19 (11-10 AAC). Bryan will move on to the semifinals of the AAC tournament and will face the winner of No. 4 seed Bluefield and No. 5 seed Brenau tomorrow at 10:00 AM.
Bryan came out of the gates on fire serving up three aces to begin the match. A barrage of Milligan errors and two 4-0 runs gave Lions a comfortable lead before ultimately finishing off the Buffs 25-18. Abigail Byington led the offensive attack for Milligan in the first set totaling four kills and a .500 hitting percentage.
After the Buffs went up 6-4 in the early stages of the second set, the Lions managed to score 17 of the next 20 to give themselves a comfortable lead 21-9. Bryan's Gigi Ford knocked down four kills for the final four points to defeat Milligan 25-14.
Five 3-0 runs and one 4-0 run proved to be too much for the Buffs in the third set as the Lions came away with the victory 25-16. Bryan tallied four service aces in the final set on their way to a grand total of 10 for the match.
Byington led Milligan in kills with seven, followed by Carley Gregory with six and Ella Maiden with five.
Two Buffs finished with double-digit assists including Kolbie Greene with 13 and Taylor Pavich with 10.
Cameron McConnell led Milligan in the dig category finishing with a total of 13 for the match.
