MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Faulkner faced off against former conference foe Reinhardt in the final event of the Invitational this evening. A positive atmosphere and resilient attitude proved crucial in catapulting the Lady Eagles into victory 25-18, 26-24, 22-25, 25-20.

The opening set was all Faulkner as the home team secured what seemed like an easy win. Set two was a different matter, however.

Reinhardt started off strong, but the Faulkner slowly gained momentum. Just as the Lady Eagles started to connect points, the visitors rallied and were staring at set point 24-20.

Faulkner needed this obstacle. For the first time this season, the Lady Eagles refused to go quietly and clawed feverishly over a wall of frustration. Kelsey Bell did a brilliant job in the serve and a relentless energy lifted team to a 26-24 win.

The third set looked too much like one that plagued the Lady Eagles in the Martin Methodist match. After quickly taking a 7-1 lead, the momentum vacated the home side of play and ushered new life into Reinhardt. Back and forth play ensued and after the 17-17 mark, Faulkner couldn't keep up.

The final bout mirrored the previous set with Faulkner relinquishing an early cushion only to get tangled in point trading midway though. The Lady Eagles trailed 15-18 before they applied the breaks to the Reinhardt attack and sparked a 7-0 run that proved insurmountable for the visitors.

Taylor Dollison was a beast up front once again with 14 kills, hitting .476. The freshman middle also had a pair of blocks.

Kelli Lamb followed with 11 kills, hitting. 348, and added 10 digs.

Brittnay Renfroe tallied eight kills, hitting .385, and led the team with four total blocks.

Morgan Wilson loaded the gun for the Lady Eagles and had 25 assists and libero Anna DeRamus had 14 digs.

"That was the most heart I've seen from this team all year," said head coach Tori Bartels. "We had something to prove to ourselves. Not to our fans, not to our win-loss recored, but to ourselves. And that's what we did."

Faulkner was 2-2 in the tournament and sits at 3-4 overall. The team travels to Gainesville, Ga., on Tuesday where they will open conference play with a very potent Brenau team. That match is set for 6 p.m.

Gallery coming soon...