The Lee volleyball team defeated longtime rival and renewed conference foe Shorter University, 3-1 Tuesday evening at Walker Arena.
The two clubs met for the 22nd time, many of those meetings coming when both were members of the Southern States Athletic Conference and the NAIA before beginning their provisional march toward NCAA Division II full membership. The Lady Flames now hold a commanding 20-2 edge in the series.
Lee jumped out to an early advantage and never looked back en route to a 25-17 first set victory.
The second set was a reversal of fortunes as Shorter came out strong and defeated the home team 25-16. The Lady Flames bounced back with a 25-17 third set win and held off a late rally by the Lady Hawks to claim the fourth and final set 25-23.
Coach Andrea Hudson's club was aided by the return of senior setter Camil Martinez who had been away for two weeks competing for the Dominican Republic in the U23 World Championships. Martinez helped lead the Dominican Republic to a second place finish in the event. Martinez finished with 33 assists to help setup the offense in attack.
Paula Martins continued her stellar play in 2013 with a double-double performance. The senior registered 16 kills and 10 digs in the contest. Lauren Williams fired 10 kills and had a solid .409 attack pct. while adding six blocks. Latrice Johnson scored a double-double of her own with 10 kills and 10 digs.
Erica Baker led the way for the Lady Hawks with 12 kills. Anna Graham added eight kills while Dena Pierce and Cheyenne Frady finished with 18 assists apiece.
The victory moves Lee to 9-5 overall and 6-3 in Gulf South Conference play. The loss drops the Lady Hawks to 9-6 on the year and 5-4 in conference matches.
The Lady Flames will get a few days of rest after playing three matches in five days. Lee will welcome non-conference opponent Campbellsville University to the sport court at Walker Arena on Tuesday Oct. 22. First serve is slated for 7 p.m.