MONTGOMERY, Ala. - It was Faulkner that carried the energy though the bulk of set one in this afternoon's opener against Southeastern (Fla.) on Day 2 of the Invitational, but it didn't take long for the Fire to spark. The visitors bolted through the second round and held the reins through the remainder of the match to book the 21-25, 25-12, 25-21, 25-22 victory. The Lady Eagles followed with perhaps the most sound overall play demonstrated so far this season, but it wasn't enough to overtake a very potent Webber International (Fla.) team. The Warriors claimed the win 17-25, 25-9, 31-29, 26-24.

Errors again plagued the Faulkner rotation and seemed to continually quench any hope of maintaining consistency on the court in Game 1. Though the team did manage to patch up the bulk of errors in serve and on the defensive font, attack blunders reached an early-season high. Southeastern delivered a team hitting percentage of .226 in the four-set affair while Faulkner floundered with a .030.

The tournament finale proved a different story altogether, however. Faulkner cut its offensive error count in half which immediately boosted consistency and confidence.

The Lady Eagles opened up with a convincing win over Webber, but began to struggle profoundly in the ensuing matchup which led to a brutal loss.

Faulkner responded with renewed intensity in the final two showdowns, however, and received a vigorous surge from senior middle Alysa Klassen. Though the Lady Eagles ultimately came up short, the two extended-point sets might have done more to build confidence and fortitude than the losses dampened the team's overall record.

"You have to view that as a victory," head coach Tori Bartels told her team after the game. "You have to continue to focus on what you're doing well and look at the overall journey and not just these difficult steps. You grew as a whole. We will continue to work and continue to get better. I care more about you guys turning this corner than I do about 'W's' and 'L's'."

Faulkner hit .181 in the match, on par with Webber's .200, and out-blocked the visitors eight to four.

Klassen finished the day with 25 kills which included 16 against the Warriors. She also had eight total blocks.

Krystalynn Leomiti added 26 digs, 19 kills and three block assists while Tori Marchant matched Klassen's eight total blocks and offered up six kills.

Katie Musser quarterbacked the offensive assault and dished out 69 assists while delivering 27 digs and four aces.

Libero Julianne Wilkes had 47 digs, 30 of which came against Webber.

Faulkner (0-4) will next enter the Southeastern Conferences Challenge hosted by Union in Barbourville, Ky., beginning on Friday, Sept. 2.

Action gallery coming Monday...