The Lady Cougars (9-0, 1-0 AMC South) used a balanced hitting attack against the Blue Knights (5-10, 0-3 AMC South) that featured nine kills each by senior middle hitter Shena Beheler (left) and sophomore outside hitter Courtney Springer and eight kills from freshman middle hitter Jackie Albrecht. Sophomore middle hitter Stephanie Zollars and junior outside hitter Audrey Hickinbotham added four kills apiece, and senior outside hitter/libero Tiffany Milburn and freshman middle hitter Sarah Yutzy finished with three kills each.

Defensively, Beheler led MVNU with 16 digs, while Milburn posted 15 digs. Albrecht added seven digs, and freshman setter Caitlin Myles also contributed six digs. Albrecht registered a team-high six blocks, while Springer and Beheler finished with five and four blocks respectively. Sophomore setter Kaylin Austen also handed out 22 assists, while Milburn served up four aces.

“It was nice open up conference play with a victory and to get everyone into the match,” said MVNU head coach Paul Swanson. “Shena and Tiffany did a great job in the back row for us tonight which allowed us to have success in the front row. Now, we will gear up for this weekend and four tough matches.”

The Lady Cougars will travel to the Best of the Best Tournament in Fort Wayne, Indiana, for four matches on Friday and Saturday. On Friday, MVNU will begin play against host University of Saint Francis at 3:00 p.m. and then take on Berry (Ga.) College, which received votes in the latest NAIA national poll. Then, on Saturday, the Lady Cougars will square off with the University of Saint Francis (Ill.) at 1:00 p.m. and 13th-ranked Georgetown (Ky.) College at 5:00 p.m.