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By: Stephen Williams

MELBOURNE, Fla. – In the second day of competition at the Panther Invitational, the Columbus State University volleyball team split a pair of matches. The Lady Cougars swept Albany State 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 25-23) before falling to Puerto Rico-Mayaguez 3-1 (20-25, 25-12, 25-18, 25-17). The games were played inside the Clemente Center at Florida Tech.
 
Game One
 
Searching for its first win of the season, Columbus State (1-7) found its stride midway through the opening set. Trailing 7-6, the Lady Cougars mounted a 10-3 run to take a commanding 16-10 lead. Megan Frame picked up a pair of kills to spur the run, while Cori Ehmen continued to serve well with two aces.
 
CSU continued to pull away through the rest of the set with Frame finishing it off on her fourth kill of the match.
 
The Lady Cougars were forced to come from behind in set number two. Albany State (0-6) scored the opening point of the set and kept the game tied or in its favor for the majority of the game.
 
Columbus State tied the set on seven different occasions before finally taking its first lead, 20-19, behind kills from Malaisia Stallworth and Abby King. The Lady Rams briefly took the lead once again at 21-20, but Frame came up with the final kill for the second straight set to give the Lady Cougars a 2-0 lead.
 
In the final set, it was Albany State that once again led for the majority. Down 17-16, Payten Joy picked up a kill and a solo block to push CSU out in front. King then wrapped up the sweep with a kill on the final point to give the Lady Cougars their first win of the year.
 
Megan Frame finished with a then season high nine kills to lead Columbus State, while Abby King turned in a career high eight. King also had nine digs with Caytlin Merritt leading the defense with 11.
 
Game Two
 
Looking to build off the earlier win, Columbus State started off on the right foot in set one. PR-Mayaguez held a slim 11-10 lead until the Lady Cougar attack got rolling. Andrea Skipor keyed a 6-0 CSU run with a pair of kills to open up a five-point lead.
 
The Lady Cougars led by as much as eight before the Bulldogs put a small run together. King and Stallworth registered kills for the final two points of the set to give CSU the early advantage.
 
The second set was a different story however, as PR-Mayaguez rolled out to an 11-3 edge and never looked back.
 
Set three was a seesaw affair with the two sides exchanging points from the outset. The Bulldogs erased a two-point deficit with five straight points and would not surrender the lead. Columbus State kept the margin within five most of the set, but could not come from behind.
 
As it did in the second set, PR-Mayaguez jumped into the lead with an 11-3 start. The Lady Cougars got within five (12-7), but would get no closer the rest of the way.
 
Megan Frame set a season high in kills for the second time on the day, totaling 12 in the match. Malaisia Stallworth and Andrea Skipor each ended with six. Cori Ehmen finished with five kills, 29 assists and nine digs.
 
Columbus State will now turn its attention to Peach Belt Conference action with league matches coming next Friday and Saturday. The Lady Cougars will take on GRU Augusta on Friday night starting at 7:00 p.m. followed by a Saturday matchup at Georgia College.