Owings Mills, MD – The Messiah women's volleyball team fell to Stevenson in the MAC Commonwealth Championship 3-2 (26-24, 21-25, 17-25, 25-17, 9-15). Kristen Douglas led the team with 14 kills and 11 digs, while Jane Underman and Braedyn Gallagher each had 10 kills. Emily Zellers recorded a season-high 25 digs, Jessica Zellers and Emily Buckwalter each finished with 10 digs respectively. Brooke Gallagher dished out 45 assists on the night.
 
The Falcons battled the whole way through, trailing 2-1 they won the fourth set to force a fifth set but the Mustangs were too much to handle. With the loss Messiah finishes 26-8 on the season.
 
The first set was an exciting one as the Falcons found themselves trailing early but kept persevering to come from behind and win 26-24.
 
Trailing early 8-2 Messiah scored three-straight points off two kills from Kristen Douglas and an error by Stevenson to cut the lead 8-5. Later with the score 10-5 in favor of the Mustangs, the Falcons responded by tallying three points in a row to pull within two 10-8.
 
A pivotal moment came with the Mustangs holding a slight edge 20-19, the Falcons scored four unanswered points off two kills from Jane Underman and two Mustang errors to lead 23-19. Stevenson answered by scoring three-straight points to pull within one but then committed a service error.
 
Messiah found themselves one point away from set victory but an attack error and kill by Kristen Brooks for Stevenson tied the game at 24. Messiah finished the first set off by tallying the final two points off a kill by Braedyn Gallagher and then Mary Underman hammered one down sealing the set one win.
 
The Falcons struggled to find an offensive flow in the second set, which ultimately led to the 25-21 defeat.
 
With Messiah down 10-7, an error by Stevenson and two Brooke Gallagher service aces tied the game at 10. Stevenson answered by scoring three-straight points but Messiah countered with three points of their own. Kills by Braedyn Gallagher, Jane Underman, and a ball handling error by the Mustangs tied the game once again at 13.
 
With the score knotted at 17, the Mustangs utilized a four-point scoring run to pull away from the Falcons 21-17.  Later with the score 22-20 in favor of the Mustangs they scored two points to pull within one point of winning the set but Mary Underman threw down a kill, however, on the next play the Falcons committed an error giving Stevenson win.
 
Messiah struggled again in the third set to find a flow and Stevenson used the momentum from the second set to keep rolling.  The Mustangs jumped to a quick 4-0 lead and stayed in control for the remainder of the set.
 
With the Mustangs holding a double-digit lead 19-9; the Falcons started a run scoring three points off kills by Emily Zellers, Braedyn Gallagher, and an error by the Mustangs to cut the lead 19-12.
 
Later with Messiah trailing 21-14, they chipped away once again scoring three-straight points to pull within four 21-17. It wasn't enough though as Stevenson went on to tally the final four points of the set en route to a 25-17 victory.
 
Needing to win the fourth set to force a fifth, Messiah played strong showing heart and determination to keep the match going. In the fourth set they tallied 14 kills and finished with a .297 attack percentage.
 
With the score tied early at four, the Falcons tallied five-straight points off two kills from Taylor Hook, one from Kristen Douglas, Brooke Gallagher, and an error by the Mustangs to take a 9-4 lead.
 
Later in the set with Messiah holding a 13-12 advantage, they scored three points in a row to widen the gap 16-12. Jane Underman had a kill and Emily Buckwalter recorded a service ace in that run.
 
A very pivotal scoring run came not long after when the Falcons were ahead 17-15. They hammered down three kills, and scored a point off a Mustang error to pull extend their lead 21-15. Later with the score 23-17 in favor of the Falcons a kill by Taylor Hook and then Mustang error gave the Falcons the 25-17 set four win.
 
The fifth and final set was competitive and points were traded back-and-forth early. Messiah was down 5-2 but tallied two points off kills by Braedyn Gallagher and Kristen Douglas to cut the lead to 5-4.
 
Not long after, trailing 6-4, two errors by Stevenson gave Messiah two points and tied the score at 6. Stevenson, however, responded by scoring four-straight points to pull away 10-6. They stayed in control the remainder of the set, as Messiah just couldn't break through their tough defense. Stevenson went on to win the fifth set 15-9 and match 3-2.
 
This year's team has much to be proud of finishing with a 26-8 record and advancing to their sixth consecutive MAC Commonwealth Championship is a notable accomplishment. The heart, grit, and determination to keep fighting, but more importantly the comradery of this year's team is something that will be remembered. The Falcons will be on the bubble for this year's NCAA Tournament and will have to wait until the selection show tomorrow to find out if they earn an at-large bid.