CHARLESTON, S.C. – A massive third-set run turned the tide in favor of Austin Peay State University’s volleyball team as they posted a four-set victory (25-16, 22-25, 25-27, 25-17) against Elon, Saturday morning in the Bulldog Invitational at McAlister Field House.

Austin Peay (8-6) nearly saw Elon run away and hide early in the third set. The Phoenix used a pair of 4-0 runs to build a 9-2 lead and force a Govs timeout.

The Governors responded to the timeout after an Elon kill with four straight points, slashing the deficit to 9-6 and forcing an Elon timeout. That stoppage had little effect as Austin Peay came out of the timeout and posted back-to-back blocks, closing to within a point, 9-8.

Elon (12-3) would score just nine points the rest of the way as the Governors continued to piece together long runs. Austin Peay took the lead for good at 16-15 after an Elon error, but another pair of Elon miscues forced it to take its final timeout at 18-15. Again, the stoppage couldn’t stem the Govs run as they rattled off three more points to build a 21-15 lead they would not relinquish. After trailing 2-9, Austin Peay finished an impressive 23-8 run on junior Ashley Slay’s kill.

Austin Peay carried that momentum into the fourth set where they rolled to a wire-to-wire victory. Elon would force six ties, but the last of those came at 12-12. The Governors scored three straight points to gain breathing room at 15-12 and slowly extended the lead. Senior Sammie Ebright and junior Kaylee Taff ended the match with a block.

The Governors scored 65 kills in the four-set affair while posting a .273 attack percentage. Slay led the Govs with 18 kills and a .500 attack percentage. Junior Cecily Gable added 17 kills at a .368 attack percentage while sophomore Kaitlyn Teeter chipped in a 13-kill, 14-dig performance. Sophomore setter Kristen Stucker paced the offense with her 52-assist, four-kill outing that also included 14 digs.

Elon was held to 40 kills – its fewest in a four-set match this season – and a .144 attack percentage. Sydney Busa led the Phoenix offense with 14 kills.

Austin Peay concludes its four-match stay at the Bulldog Invitational with a 4 p.m. (CT) contest against Savannah State.