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By: Stephen Williams

MONTEVALLO, Ala. – In the finale of 13 straight matches away from home to start the season, the Columbus State University volleyball team fell in straight sets 3-0 (25-13, 25-22, 25-18) at Montevallo on Tuesday night. The Peach Belt Conference match was played at TrustMark Arena in Montevallo, Ala.
 
Freshman Abby King was tied for the game high with nine kills on the night to lead the Lady Cougars. Megan Frame added eight and Andrea Skipor chipped in six. Cori Ehmen tallied 29 assists and eight digs, while Caytlin Merritt finished with 13 digs.
 
The night started slow for Columbus State (2-11, 0-3) as the Lady Cougars fell behind 12-5 in the opening set. CSU answered back with a pair of points, but the Falcons answered with a prolonged run that pulled them away for an easy first set win.
 
The second set got off to an ominous start as well with Montevallo (9-6, 2-1) winning the first five points. Columbus State would rally though behind King and Kylie Beaubien.
 
King assisted on a block and then earned back-to-back kills to key the comeback. Beaubien turned in a pair of kills as well as the Lady Cougars ran out four straight points to seesaw in front 13-12.
 
The set saw six more ties, the last coming at 19-all. The Falcons would then close with a 6-3 run to take the tightly contested set and a 2-0 lead.
 
Two straight Lady Cougar points tied the final set at six. Montevallo responded with two points of its own and remained in front the rest of the way. Frame turned in four of her eight kills in the final game.
 
Columbus State will now prepare for its first home match of the season on Friday against Lander. First serve is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. inside the Lumpkin Center.