HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The Valdosta State volleyball team (10-15, 9-7 Gulf South Conference) fell in a four-set loss (25-21, 18-25, 22-25, 28-30) to the hosting UAH Chargers (20-4, 12-3 GSC) on Saturday afternoon.

The Chargers jumped out to a commanding 7-1 lead in the opening set, the lone Blazer point coming on a kill by graduate Macy Brown. Junior Asia Montagnani found some momentum with the next three Blazer kills. Junior Eimy Negron Domenech added an ace to cut the lead to 8-6. Senior Katie Callenberger posted two kills and Negron Domenech added another to move VSU within 12-10. A kill from senior Ava Young and a second ace from Negron Domenech drew the teams even at 14-14.

Senior Sabrina Oncins and sophomore Eva LaRochelle (2) got involved with their first kills of the set. Callenberger and Brown added one more each to help the Blazers come from behind for a 22-20 lead. A string of Charger errors drew VSU within set point at 24-21. Sophomore Avery Mullins dropped in ace to finish the set 25-21 and give VSU a 1-0 lead in the match.

Brown and Oncins sent down the first two kills of the second set. Young and Montagnani teamed up for a block, then the latter sent down a kill. Callenberger and freshman Madison Kilmer combined for a rejection, but UAH led 11-7 early. Brown put away the next two Blazer kills.

Mullins and Young teamed up for another Blazer block when a kill from Young drew VSU within 13-12. Brown sent down her fourth kill of the set and Oncins added another, 17-14 UAH. Callenberger sent down another kill in the closing stages of the set, but UAH pulled ahead for a 25-18 victory to even the match 1-1.

Oncins and Montagnani opened the third set with a pair of kills. A block from Young and Montagnani joined more errors and kills from Callenberger and Brown to push VSU ahead 7-4. UAH fought back for an 8-7 lead when another kill from Brown evened the sides at eight. Brown recorded yet another kill and Montagnani added another. A third ace from Negron Domenech tied the set at 13-13.

Kilmer knocked down her first kill of the match while Callenberger (2) and Brown added to their ongoing tallies. Freshman Ava Keuntjes served an ace. Yet another kill from Brown drew the sides to another tie at 20-20. Brown recorded her 12^th kill, then Kilmer and Young combined for another block, but UAH escaped with a 25-22 win to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Oncins sparked the offense in the fourth set with the first two kills. Montagnani followed with another kill, then a block from Callenberger pushed VSU ahead 5-4. UAH stormed ahead with the next five points, but Brown sent down back-to-back kills to even the set at nine. The offense found its footing with six unique Blazers (Callenberger, Brown, Oncins, Young, Mullins and Montagnani) posting the next six kills. Montagnani sent down another to give VSU a 16-14 advantage.

Brown and Callenberger put away two more Blazer kills, and the Chargers notched several errors, but UAH managed to fight back for a 22-21 lead. Brown evened the set at 22 with her 17^th kill of the day, the most in her first season as a Blazer. Oncins put away another huge kill then got in on a combined block with Callenberger to tie the set again at 24. Callenberger then worked with Mullins to send down another rejection to pull VSU within set point.

UAH took the next two points for a 26-25 lead. Montagnani fired back with a kill and a service ace to power VSU ahead 27-26. UAH scored the next two points then served an error, tying the set yet again at 28. The Chargers finally escaped with a 30-28 victory and 3-1 win in the match.

Graduate Macy Brown posted a season-high 17 kills at a .226 clip. Senior Katie Callenberger and junior Asia Montagnani added ten kills each. Sophomore Avery Mullins led the Blazers with 45 assists.

Junior Eimy Negron Domenech notched a team best 37 digs over the match. Negron Domenech, the reigning GSC Defensive Player of the Week, also led the team with three service aces. Seniors Ava Young and Katie Callenberger tied to lead the team with four blocks each.

Looking Forward
The Valdosta State volleyball team returns to the Complex next weekend for its final two home matches of the regular season. The Blazers host the West Alabama Tigers (10-13, 5-10 GSC) on Friday, Nov. 7^th at 6 p.m. The team plays its final home match on Saturday at 12 p.m. against the Mississippi College Choctaws (9-16, 6-9 GSC).

Check the volleyball schedule page on vstateblazers.com for links to live stats and streaming. 

Stay up to date on all Blazer news by following @VState_Blazers on Instagram and X and by liking the "Valdosta State Blazers" Facebook page. The Blazer Athletics Mobile App is available on iTunes and Android featuring exclusive content, the latest news and updates, schedules, rosters, gameday notifications, and more.