MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Valdosta State Blazers opened up a two-game weekend with a challenging 3-1 (25-21, 19-25, 25-23, 30-28) win in a Gulf South Conference battle with the Christian Brothers Lady Bucs on Friday night in Memphis, Tenn.
 
With the triumph, Valdosta State improved to 20-5 overall and 15-2 in GSC play, while the Lady Bucs fell to 8-19 overall and 4-13 against league competition.
 
The two teams traded points in the early moments of the contest before CBU used Demi Chipman's serve to reel off five in a row and take a 14-10 lead. Valdosta State regained their composure, however, and put together a 10-3 run that consisted of two service aces and an assortment of successful attacks by Lea Jaklen, Antia Rodriguez-Sanchez, and Susanna Peonia. The rally set the Blazers up for a 25-21 victory in the opening set, which they sealed with a kill by freshman Ashley Miller.
 
Set two featured another neck and neck start, but Demi Chipman struck again as CBU's server for four consecutive points. The run put the Lady Bucs in front 13-8, and Valdosta State was unable to recover, dropping the second set 25-19.
 
The Lady Bucs held momentum in the third to open up the frame with an 8-4 run, which forced Blazer Head Coach Mike Swan to take an early time out. The decision by Swan proved to be a timely one, as Peonia registered a kill to spark a 6-1 run that gave VSU a 10-9 lead midway through the set. From that moment on, the two teams tied the set up seven different times before back-to-back kills by Susanna Peonia and Antia Rodriguez-Sanchez snapped a 23-23 tie and lifted the Blazers to a 2-1 match lead.
 
A thrilling finish saw the two teams tie the fourth and final set 16 different times, but two kills by Jaklen and Peonia, along with an attack error by CBU's Alexis Gillis, wrapped up a 30-28 victory for VSU and helped the Blazers claim their sixth consecutive victory.
 
Peonia, Jaklen, Miller, and Rodriguez-Sanchez all reached double digit numbers in the kill column, while Jessica Codato offered up the second highest assist total in her career with 56. Both Codato and Jaklen claimed double-doubles with to 15 and 11 digs, respectively, and Natalia Campos anchored VSU's defensive effort with a team-high 27 pickups.
 
Next up for Valdosta State, it's another GSC road matchup in Jackson, Tenn. against the Lady Bulldogs of Union. Tip time for the contest is slated for 1:00 p.m. EST, and live coverage will be available at www.vstateblazers.com.