PIKEVILLE, Ky. — Milligan University's women's volleyball team went up to Pikeville, Ky. for an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) contest against the Bears of the University of Pikeville. Following a tight start to the contest, with a first set that went beyond regulation, the Buffs could not match the Bears. A three-set loss (27-29, 15-25, 17-25) handed the Lady Buffs their 10th conference loss of the campaign.

The opening set of the contest started with the Buffaloes in a nearly immediate hole, falling behind by a 9-3 tally. That would end up being the largest lead of the set for the Bears, as an incremental climb was made by Milligan. In fact, the surge was so strong that the Buffaloes had three shots at winning the set, leading 24-21. However, UPIKE would not go down easily and scored three straight points to knot things at 24-24. The next several points ended up being traded back-and-forth before the Bears strung a few together to eventually win the set, 29-27. 

Any air in the Buffaloes' balloon was sucked out after the heartbreaking conclusion of the first stanza. Milligan never stood a chance in the second frame, allowing the Bears to race out front and keep their lead until the end at 25-15.

After the second set, MU would face an uphill climb, but would put forth a strong effort in the early parts of the set. They led 11-10 through 21 points as they searched for a triumph on the frame to prolong the battle. Over the remainder of the set, though, it was Pikeville that rattled off a 15-6 outburst to end the Buffaloes' night prematurely in the third set, 25-17.

Bella Devoti was the most consistent and prolific attacker for the Buffaloes all match, notching 13 kills on the night with just six errors on 45 attacks. Riley Brinn supplied six kills for the squad, and Kira Ryan terminated five swings. Addison Varney picked up four kills in the loss and Erin Littleton notched a trio. Faith Wilson dished out all but one of the Milligan assists, with 29.

R. Brinn's 14 digs led the way for Milligan, with two other Buffs landing in double digits in pickups. Grace Sanderson had 12 in the bout, while Olivia Schoenstra added 11 of her own. Wilson tallied eight and Taylor Brinn picked up six. Barney led the team in blocks, assisting on three. Wilson had a pair of block assists, and R. Brinn, Ryan and Courtney Nye all had one, as well.

Milligan now sits at 6-22, 5-10 AAC for the year and are right on the fringe of the AAC Tournament qualifiers list with just four conference battles left on the schedule. Their next event is on Halloween night, when the Buffs play their Senior Night match against Union Commonwealth (Ky.) at 6:30 p.m. inside Steve Lacy Fieldhouse.