MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Faulkner struggled across the board through two sets in this afternoon's Southern States Athletic Conference match against Brenau (Ga.) before flipping a switch heading into the third bout. The Lady Eagles managed to shake off the cobwebs and push on to the 25-22, 19-25, 25-16, 25-13 victory.

Finesse was the tool the Golden Tigers (5-16, 3-9 SSAC) used to frustrate the Lady Eagles for the lion's share of the first two sets this afternoon. Brenau's smart tipping and slow tempo gave Faulkner an absolute fit defensively, which in turn kept the offense well out of system. 

The home team squeezed out win in the opener, but after dropping Set 2, the birds decided it was finally time to go to work.

The Faulkner defense perked up, delivering more stable passes to the setting duo which ultimately led to a more pronounced offensive assault. Once the Lady Eagles were able to fire plays in-system, Breanu never recovered.

Helping ignite the front row attack was Cassie Bailie, who shifted from defensive specialist to six-rotation outside hitter starting in the third go around. Bailie's aggressive swings early on paved the way for a Lady Eagle assault that, once airborne, couldn't be contained.

"Welcome to the match," head coach Tori Bartels told her team at a Brenau timeout in Set 3. "This is my team. Where have you been?"

The new-found aggression coupled with relentless defense both up front and on the back row anchored a pair of lopsided decisions through the remaining sets.

Despite hitting just over .100 in the opener, Faulkner finished the match with an impressive .325 efficiency rating.

Leading the pack was senior middle Alysa Klassen who registered 15 kills, hitting a staggering .565. The combined numbers represent her best overall performance offensively so far this season and she had four block assets up front to boot.

Daijah Washington added 10 kills, hitting .348, and offered up nine digs and a pair of block assists.

Krystalynn Leomiti had eight kills, hitting .412, and dished out the front row side of the two-setter offense with 15 assists.

Bailie, who didn't really make an offensive impact until the third set, had seven kills and hit .400. She was also second defensively with 14 digs.

Katie Musser ran the flip side of the Lady Eagle offense and had 25 assists and 10 digs on the day.

Libero Julianne Wilkes led the home team with 16 digs.

Faulkner improved to 13-11 overall and 9-3 in the league. The Lady Eagles will next have a battle on their hands when they host Mobile Tuesday evening. The Rams enter the match tied for first in the conference with an 11-1 record. Mobile defeated Faulkner 3-1 previously this season. The showdown in slated for 7 p.m.