LYNCHBURG, Va. -- Competition between Virginia Wesleyan College and Lynchburg College in women's volleyball started off strong Wednesday and finished intense.

In the end, the host Hornets of Lynchburg simply outlasted the Marlins, winning an Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) match 25-17, 21-25, 25-23, 26-24.

Virginia Wesleyan (12-10, 5-3 ODAC) led 20-14 in the third set, as Tempe Martens (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park), Alex Lambert (Alexandria/Hayfield), Tiffany Barrett (Stafford/North Stafford), and Madelyn McMurray (Springfield/West Springfield) registered timely kills to help the Marlins expand an 11-9 lead.

But, Lynchburg (10-11, 5-3 ODAC) answered with kills from Aricquel Payne (Woodbridge/Osbourn Park), Brittany Crawford (Afton/Nelson County), and Jennifer Garrett (Forest/Liberty Christian) to help pull back into the competition. The Hornets tied the match at 21, 22, and 23, before receiving the winning points on back-to-back VWC errors.

The fourth set was tighter from the start as the teams played to 15 ties, the last one at 24-all.  Lynchburg owned a 24-22 lead when Martens and Kelsey Caviston (Lanexa/Warhill) produced back-to-back kills to knot the score. But, a VWC error pushed Lynchburg into the lead and the Hornets wrapped up the set, and the match, when Gabby Myers recorded an ace.

Virginia Wesleyan's lone set win started with a 3-1 lead. The Marlins stayed in front throughout the set, holding off the Hornets, who pulled within a point twice late in the set. VWC led 23-21 and claimed the win after a pair of Lynchburg errors.

Martens led VWC with nine kills, Caviston finished with eight, and Lambert added seven.  Marin Crowder (Charlottesville/Crozet Wester Albemarle) recorded 20 digs and Kirstin Sessoms (Virginia Beach/Bayside) added 17 assists and 10 digs.

Amanda Perry (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) led Lynchburg with 11 kills.

Virginia Wesleyan returns to competition on Saturday, Oct. 19, in the final home competition of the regular season.  The Marlins will host an ODAC quadruple event, including Emory & Henry College, Guilford College, and Randolph-Macon College.  VWC will take on Emory & Henry at 11 a.m. and Guilford at 3:30 p.m.  Randolph-Macon will face Guilford at 11 a.m. and Emory & Henry at 3:30 p.m.

--AMDG--