In front of a loud, pink-filled Walker Arena crowd, the Lee University volleyball team defeated West Georgia, 3-1 on Friday evening in the annual Volley For A Cure match.

The Lady Flames hosted the eighth annual event to benefit the Mary Ellen Locher Foundation. The culmination of the evening took place between sets two and three when the annual scholarship was presented to a student whose family has been affected by breast cancer.

"We have had such great support from the community again this year," said head coach Andrea Hudson. "When we present the scholarship it really hits home how very special this whole event is. We are hoping to raise close to $25,000 this year."

The Wolves (3-25, 0-18) would charge out of the gate and take the opening set, 25-23 to momentarily quiet the capacity crowd. Lee (12-15, 7-10) would bounce back in set two and claim a commanding, 25-9 win before edging West Georgia, 25-23 in the crucial third set.

The fourth set belonged to the Lady Flames as they recorded 17 kills on a .314 hitting percentage en route to a 25-17 win.

Silvia Sartori set a career-high with 23 kills and committed just six errors to record a .315 hitting percentage. Catherine Conley followed closely behind with a career-high 17 slams of her own.

Freshman Hillary Hoffpauir set up the offensive with 43 assists. Fellow freshman Emily Bento added six kills but was very efficiency with a .417 attack percentage. Brooke Wilsman pitched in eight kills.

Senior Stephanie Hernandez led the club with 26 digs. Fellow senior Sarah Davis added nine digs and Haley Foote came on in the final moments to added three assists in three opportunities. All three players were honored before the match in a special senior day ceremony.

"Sarah has been with us for four years and we have really enjoyed having her on the team," said Hudson. "She has battled some pretty serious knee problems the last couple of years and we are glad she has been able to work back out onto the court.

"Stephanie and Haley both came here last year from Miami Dade. Haley has also had some nagging injuries and because our passing was not very good tonight we had to wait to get her in the match."

The gritty West Georgia club was led by Katie Hanson's 12 kills and Helen Menchinger's 11. The balanced attack also featured nine slams from Devon Dickey. Victoria Rushin tallied 31 assists and Casey Roethler recorded 18 digs.

"I can't imagine being anywhere else these last four years," said Davis after the match. "I've grown so close to my teammates and my coaches and Lee has been a great place for me and I'm really going to miss it."

The Lady Flames will get right back to work tomorrow evening as they host West Alabama in a key GSC matchup. Lee currently sits even with the Tigers for the sixth and final spot in the GSC Tournament.