MONTGOMERY, Ala. - With very little left in the tank after Friday evening's double-tiebreaker roller coaster ride, Faulkner was looking to fuel an upset against Mobile in the semifinals of the Southern States Athletic Conference tournament here at the Cramton Bowl Multiplex this morning. Despite the fatigue the Lady Eagles looked strong and polished out of the gate and even claimed the match lead, but problematic passing opposite a fierce Ram serve proved too big an obstacle for Faulkner to overcome in the end and Mobile ultimately advanced to the finals with the 20-25, 25-22, 25-13, 25-20 victory.

Faulkner slowly crept away from Mobile in a tight opening-set race to earn the early lead, but soon found itself trailing by a thick margin nearing the halfway point of the second game.

Mistakes in serve receive brought with them a hefty weight that the Lady Eagles spent the rest of the set trying to remove. Once revealed, the Rams continued to press on the weakness causing Faulkner to backpedal repeatedly, creating a scoring gap the Lady Eagles simply couldn't close despite a late offensive spark.

The passing problem persisted for Faulkner in the third set as well and all-around play suffered as a result. The Lady Eagles spent the lion's share of the bout scrambling well behind the 10-foot line while Mobile exploded. The Rams claimed a rapid 6-0 lead before the Lady Eagles could react and extended their domination throughout.

By the final frame Faulkner was in unwelcome, but all too familiar territory facing a must-have pair of sets to remain alive in the post-season. So, in the face of incredible odds and while running on fumes, the Lady Eagles dug in and went to work one last time.

Faulkner fought with an intensity that seemed impossible given the level of exhaustion. Mobile continued to hammer away and the Lady Eagles continued to offer up surprises. In the end, however, the Ram attack prevailed.

Alysa Klassen and Hannah Shanley were again standouts for Faulkner. The duo struck for nine kills each while Klassen added five total blocks and Shanley was second defensively with nine digs. Klassen was later named to the league's all-tournament team.

Sarah Ford followed with seven kills and had a pair of blocks.

Sarah Dubberley had seven digs, six kills and three total blocks.

Katie Musser logged 18 assists and six digs while Jordan Jones, who fought through a nagging calf injury she sustained early in the match, tallied 13 assists and four digs.

Delricka Anthony led the back line with 11 digs and libero Cassie Bailie matched Shanley with nine more.

"There's absolutely no reason to hang your heads," head coach Tori Bartels told her team after the loss. "I couldn't have asked more from this team. You played through injuries and exhaustion and did that against a very good volleyball team. For once, I simply can't ask what more we could have done because I know you did everything you could and left it all on the court in the truest sense possible. I love you all and am as proud of you as I've ever been of a team."

Faulkner closed the season at 22-15 and in its second consecutive semifinal appearance.