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By: Stephen Williams

AUGUSTA, Ga. – In its first conference match of the season, the Columbus State University volleyball team fell in five sets 3-2 (25-13, 21-25, 20-25, 25-17, 15-12) at GRU Augusta on Friday night. The match was played at Christenberry Fieldhouse in Augusta, Ga.
 
Columbus State (1-8, 0-1) was led by Megan Frame with 10 kills on the night with just two errors, hitting .364. Freshman Maddie Harris turned in a career high nine kills, while Abby King also registered a career high with 34 assists.
 
The match started on the wrong note for the Lady Cougars as GRU Augusta (6-1, 1-0) ran away behind 18 first set kills.
 
CSU rebounded in the next two sets though. The Lady Cougars got off to a good start in the second getting three kills from Andrea Skipor and two from Harris while taking a 10-7 lead.
 
The Jaguars erased the deficit quickly however, running off five straight points and stretching the lead out to five at 16-11. Columbus State would right the ship as GRU began to accumulate errors.
 
A Skipor service ace gave CSU an 18-17 lead and the Lady Cougars would close strong from there. Freshman Malaisia Stallworth finished off the set with a kill to even the match at one.
 
With the third set tied at 11, Columbus State used a 4-1 run to take a 15-12 lead and one it wouldn't relinquish. The Lady Cougar blocking line closed the set out strong getting three in the final six points. Stallworth teamed up with Harris and Skipor for a pair, while Frame and King finished the set off with a block.
 
Looking to even the match, GRU Augusta broke a seven-all tie with a 10-1 run that all but put the fourth set away.
 
The fifth set started with back-to-back runs of five straight points. The Jaguars ran off the first five points of the set before the Lady Cougars answered with five of their own.
 
The two teams battled to a tie at 11 with the match hanging in the balance. GRU picked up two straight kills to force a Columbus State timeout. Kylie Beaubien put down a kill after the stoppage to bring CSU within one, but the Jaguars earned the next two points to get the victory.
 
Columbus State is back in action on Saturday as the Lady Cougars travel to Georgia College. First serve from Milledgeville, Ga. is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.