MACON, GA – Charleston Southern volleyball bounced back from a first-set setback Friday afternoon, winning the final three sets to defeat Montana State, 3-1 (22-25, 25-16, 25-23, 25-16), at Hawkins Arena as part of the Mercer Invitational.

The Buccaneers improved to 7-5 on the season with the victory, while Montana State fell to 6-4.

After Montana State claimed the opening set, 25-22, Charleston Southern responded emphatically in the second. The Buccaneers hit .400 as a team and used a 10-1 run to turn an 11-10 advantage into a 21-11 lead before closing out the frame, 25-16.

The third set featured a back-and-forth battle, with the teams tied at 13-13 before CSU used a 3-0 run to take the advantage. Montana State fought back to pull within one late, but the Buccaneers held on for a 25-23 victory and took a 2-1 match lead.

CSU then jumped out to a 9-4 advantage in the fourth set before Montana State pulled even at 11-11. The Buccaneers answered with an 8-1 run, highlighted by four consecutive service aces from Presley Morris, to take a 19-12 lead. Charleston Southern finished the match on a 5-2 run to secure the 25-16 set victory and complete the comeback.

Notables:

• Brynn Minter led the Buccaneers with 18 kills while hitting a .412 and added 11 digs, three aces and 21.5 points.

• Faith Burch contributed 10 kills while hitting a .276 and added two total blocks

• Dillia Lowry posted seven kills with a .333 hitting percentage.

• Emma Bednarek recorded four kills, one service ace and a team-high four total blocks.

• Presley Morris anchored the CSU defense with 16 digs while adding six service aces

• Tristin Sutton registered 24 assists, 11 digs and two kills. Cara McLean also added 16 assists.

• As a team, Charleston Southern hit a .278 for the match (the team's fourth highest efficiency mark so far this season) and held advantages over Montana State in kills (51-47), assists (49-42), digs (59-47), aces (13-7) and total blocks (5-3).

• The Buccaneers' 13 service aces (second highest for CSU this season) included six from Morris and three from Minter.

Up Next:

The Bucs will face the hosting institution of the Mercer Invitational, the Mercer Bears at 2:00 PM tomorrow, September 19th, afternoon. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.

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