In a match that had more twists and turns than an East Tennessee mountain road, Christian Brothers University handed Lee a five-set defeat on Tuesday evening in Walker Arena.
 
The Lady Bucs wasted no time in claiming the first two sets, 25-20, 25-19 and appeared to be ready to score a three-set victory. The Lady Flames had other ideas, bouncing back to capture the next two sets 25-19, 25-21. The short-set went down to the wire with the lead shifting back and forth. With the set deadlocked at 13, the Lady Bucs scored the final two points to hand the Lady Flames the tough defeat.
 
With the win, Christian Brothers improved to 8-6 (GSC standings) on the year and moved a step closer to gaining one of the six spots in the upcoming Gulf South Conference tournament. The Lady Flames slipped to 6-8 and faces challenging tests in their quest to reach the tournament. Valdosta State comes calling on Friday, followed by a visit from the top team in the GSC, West Florida on Saturday afternoon.
 
Silvia Sartori paced the Lee attack with 14 kills and 20 digs. Blaire Beamer registered 10 kills, while Brooke Wilsman and Catherine Conley picked up nine kills apiece. Conley also had a solid .308 hitting percentage and added five blocks.
 
Kristi Farley dished off a season-high 27 assists and also recorded 10 digs. Sadie Johnson came away with 18 assists, nine digs and a game-high six aces. MaKayla Beebe went to the floor for 17 digs and Wilsman added 11.
 
Christian Brothers' front line was directed by Emma Lenoir and Mary Kathryn Miller. Lenoir had 22 kills and seven digs. Miller showed why she is one of the top players in the GSC by knocking down 16 kills and registering .538 hitting mark. Jessica Reber, another top player in the conference, had 46 assists to go along with 14 digs. Blythe Clausen was her team's dig leader with 19 but Reber also came up with 14 digs as did Alexa Henderson.
 
Both clubs had problems with their overall serves. Christian Brothers was guilty of 14 service errors and Lee 13.