by Ryan Bartels

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - After outlasting William Carey in last night's Southern States Athletic Conference nail-biter, Faulkner (8-3, 2-0) hoped to enter today's matchup against league foe Loyola (5-7, 0-2) with a more concentrated attack and unified rhythm. Despite a piercing start that caused the Wolfpack to backpedal, the Lady Eagles lacked the energy that proved crucial in yesterday's big win and soon found themselves in a 2-1 deficit for the second time in as many games. Faulkner finally overcame its mental rut in the essential fourth set and pulled out another five-set victory, 25-23, 20-25, 21-25, 25-19, 15-10.

"We didn't have the same intensity and mindset coming in to today," said head coach Tori Bartels following the whirlwind victory. "I finally had to throw a wrench in everything to try and get them out of their own heads. I altered the lineup so dramatically that it forced them to focus on what they were doing and where they were constantly. We even flirted with being out of rotation and missed countless substitutions as a result, but the girls were finally thinking about something other than their mistakes. When I gave them some sort of real reason to be confused they seemed to forget about the things causing the problems."

The Lady Eagles were confident and consistent early on, igniting a 6-1 run from opening serve before eventually holding a nine-point cushion with just six left to acquire.

Loyola refused to go quietly, however, and after chipping away slowly at the deficit Faulkner stumbled with four consecutive errors at the 22-15 mark giving the Wolfpack new confidence at the tail end of a tight race.

Loyola entered the second set with a new-found sense of aggression and crawled methodically into a 5-4 edge and never relinquished control of the lead.

The Wolfpack then jumped out with a heavy presence early in the third bout forcing the home team on an up-hill path. The Lady Eagles inched past the visitors at 7-6 and more or less controlled the tempo for the ensuing 19 points. Loyola severed a 16-16 stalemate, the seventh tie of the set, and controlled the scoreboard en route to a 2-1 game advantage.

Then came the curve ball.

In an effort to break the unnecessary anxiety and doubt that seemed to have plagued her girls for the better part of two sets, Bartels scrambled the lineup, jostling normal opposites and calling into question, at least to a degree, just who would be doing what in the bazaar rotation. The new, genuine frustration ultimately delivered on its intent as Faulkner focused less on emotion and more on fundamentals and fluidity.

The birds darted out of the starting block in a 4-0 sprint in Set 4 with a pair of Katie Musser aces serving as meat in the point sandwich. Despite an eight-point span in the early third that put Faulkner in a brief rut, the team never truly faltered and the confidence and passion that elevated the team over the Crusaders yesterday soon permitted the gym. The Lady Eagles led for 50 of the final 51 points of the match.

Tori Marchant was again the dominant firepower for the Lady Eagles. The junior middle had 13 kills and hit .480 against the Wolfpack. She booked six total blocks and recorded four digs to boot.

Right side hitter Kirsten Carter shined bright for the home team as well. The freshman delivered 11 kills and had three block assists and a pair of digs.

Kortney Barnes matched Marchant's defensive numbers with six total stops and also tallied seven kills.

Libero Julianne Wilkes scooped 24 digs in the match but it was solid defensive improvement from setters Musser and Ariana Vannoy that really helped bail the Lady Eagles out of several jams.

Musser paced the offense with 22 assists, but secured a double-double performance by adding 18 digs; twice as many as in last night's five-set affair. Vannoy followed with 17 assists and 10 digs for the team's second double-double effort. The freshman also recorded four service aces.

Faulkner will have little time to recover as they prepare to take on Huntington College across town at 7 p.m. this evening.