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By: Stephen Williams

COLUMBUS – A late rally was not enough on Tuesday night as the Columbus State University volleyball was upended by Montevallo 3-1 (25-16, 25-19, 24-26, 25-16). The Peach Belt Conference match was played in the Lumpkin Center.

Megan Frame and Abby King tied for the game high with 13 kills. King added three aces and 15 digs for the double-double effort. Cori Ehmen was two shy of her season-high with 37 assists on the night, while Caytlin Merritt matched the CSU program record with 30 digs.

"I thought the third set and start of the fourth was the best we've played all season," said head coach Casey Cornett. "I keep telling the girls that it's not about wins and losses at this points, it's about getting better. I thought we did that tonight."

Columbus State (2-17, 0-9) came out rolling on Tuesday, jumping all over the Falcons out of the gate. CSU ran off five straight points behind the serve of Brittany Moore and vaulted out to an 11-4 advantage.

The lead was once again seven at 12-5 when Montevallo (13-4, 5-3) turned it around. The Falcons put together a 17-2 run to turn the score in their favor (22-14) and all but end the opening set.

An early run aided the Lady Cougars to start the second as well, with four straight opening up a 6-4 margin. After an extended run put UM in front, CSU answered with four straight again to tie the game at 11-all.

The two sides traded runs with Columbus State earning a 16-15 lead after one of King's three aces. Montevallo had the answer though, closing the set with a 9-3 spurt to hold a 2-0 lead at the break.

Coming out of the locker room, Columbus State ramped up its play in a back and forth third. The Lady Cougars erased three-point deficits on three different occasions, finally seesawing in front at 20-19.

Trailing 24-23, CSU wasn't ready to go home just yet. Malaisia Stallworth hammered home the set-tying kill to force extra points. Merritt then gave the Lady Cougars the lead with an ace and a tandem block from King and Kylie Beaubien wrapped up the set in CSU's favor.

The fourth set remained tight in the early stages with Columbus State staying within one at 10-9 following a Beaubien kill. The Falcons then stretched the lead out winning 11 of the next 15 points to open up an eight-point lead. From there, Montevallo would hold steady and wrap up the set and the match.

Columbus State will now prepare for back-to-back home matches over the weekend, beginning with Francis Marion on Friday. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the Lumpkin Center.