St. Mary's City, Md. – The rally by the St. Mary's College of Maryland volleyball team comes up strong Tuesday night in the first round of the 2015 Capital Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship Tournament. Fourth-seeded St. Mary's (17-12) turned around a 2-1 deficit and outlasted fifth-seeded Marymount (Va.) University (18-10) for the 3-2 victory.

"I'm proud of what we accomplished tonight. Marymount was playing well tonight and we battled back and forth from set to set. Our team tightened up their laces and said not today then got the job done. We focused, played disciplined volleyball and came together. Mimi Graf led us at the net, on defense and as our setter, her leadership was pivotal tonight. Most importantly, we stayed together as a team by focusing on supporting each other through every point," expressed second-year head coach Jeremy Sands.

Tonight's win marks the second time this season St. Mary's has defeated Marymount as the Seahawks tallied a road sweep during the regular-season on October 14, snapping a five-match skid against the Saints. It was also the first time St. Mary's has recorded consecutive wins over the Saints since a five-match win streak against MU between October 18, 2007 and October 26, 2011.

St. Mary's now has the opportunity for redemption on Thursday, November 5 when the Seahawks travel to Newport News, Virginia to face top-seeded Christopher Newport University (No. 6 in Division III) in a semifinal matchup. During the regular-season, CNU came to St. Mary's City and left with a 3-2 victory on October 18.

Junior Mimi Graf (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) did indeed pace the Seahawks tonight with her third triple-double of the season. M. Graf notched team-bests of 13 kills and 18 assists plus 12 digs while hitting a match-best .591. Senior middle hitter Mandy Goodspeed (Columbia, Md./Atholton) also finished in double digits with 10 kills and added five blocks (2 solos, 3 assists).

The first-round match came down to the fifth and decisive set after St. Mary's came back from 2-1 down with a 25-18 win in the fourth to even up the match at 2-2. The last game featured four tied scores and two lead changes. The Seahawks opened up with a 2-1 lead before Marymount staked a 5-4 lead behind three kills by the McAlpin sisters.

Goodspeed returned the lead to St. Mary's for good as her kill gave them a 7-6 edge. The Seahawks pushed their lead to 10-6 as a Marymount attacking error capped a 7-1 SMCM run. Down 13-10, the Saints called their second timeout and then closed the gap to 14-12. However, Goodspeed sealed the deal with her 10th kill of the match of an assist from senior setter Grace Chao (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial).

Chao finished the match with her fifth double-double of the season as she tallied 13 assists and 11 digs while junior outside hitter Alli Graf (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) managed the defensive front with team-best 19 digs and four block assists plus picking up six kills. Senior middle hitter Karlee Valliant (Arnold, Md./Broadneck) contributed six kills and six blocks (2 solos, 4 assists) to bolster the team's all-around play.

St. Mary's started the match strong as the Seahawks never trailed and the set score was never tied, rolling to a 25-16 first set win. Goodspeed and the Graf connection paced the team in the win as Goodspeed had four kills, M. Graf dished six assists, and A. Graf collected seven digs.

Marymount responded by winning the next two sets, 25-23 and 25-11, and taking a 2-1 lead in the match. The second game was neck-in-neck but the Saints just edged St. Mary's by closing out the set on a 15-11 run in turning back a 12-10 setback. It was all Marymount in the third as the Seahawks experienced their worst hitting of the match, hitting -0.100 (4-8-39).

The Seahawks gathered their composure and poise, staying on Marymount's heels in the fourth set. The Saints claimed an early lead and stretched it to 10-8 before St. Mary's took over. The Seahawks capitalized on several Marymount errors in posting a 19-13 advantage for their biggest lead. After the Saints pulled within 22-18, M. Graf had a hand in the final three points of the set. She put St. Mary's two points away with a kill then assisted senior captain Autumn Fisher's (Hagerstown, Md./ North Hagerstown) kill before serving up an ace for the win.

Senior Morgan McAlpin (Brookeville, Md./Sherwood Hall) paced the Saints in the loss with a match-best 14 kills and a .341 hitting percentage while her sophomore sister, Margaret, added 10. Defensively, Marymount was led by senior libero Courtney Phung (Stone Ridge, Va./Freedom) with 23 digs while junior Cailyn Thomas (White Plains, Md./Friendly) added seven blocks (1 solo, 6 assists).

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