St. Charles, Mo. - The Maryville volleyball team began the 2016 season with two matches at the Lindenwood Invitational in St. Charles, Mo. The Saints lost the opener to the host Lions 25-17, 25-17, 30-28 before bouncing back in the second match versus Georgian Court in a 25-15, 25-13, 25-22 sweep.
 
Against Lindenwood, the Saints were down 8-5 but forged an 8-8 tie. The teams traded points as Maddie Timmermann and Makayla Campbell both had kills to deadlock the set at 10-10. However, Lindenwood used a 4-0 run to take control. The Saints never got closer than five points the rest of the opening set. In set two, Cassidy Arndt and Zoe Zeiter opened set two with consecutive kills to give Maryville the early lead. Arndt finished a play, and Timmermann served an ace for a 9-6 Saints lead. After an LU point, Ashley Selman had a kill for a 10-7 advantage. The Lions roared back with seven unanswered points and took a 15-10 margin. Arndt's kill ended the Lindenwood run but the Saints were unable to even the match as the Lions went ahead 2-0.
 
The Saints jumped to a 4-1 lead in set three as two LU miscues and an Allison Lakin kill boosted Maryville to a 4-1 lead. The Lions inched back to 7-6 before Timmermann sandwiched a block and a kill around an MU ace for a 10-6 margin. Maryville still led 15-14 until Lindenwood tallied five of the next six points to grab the lead. The Saints were down 19-16 but reeled off five straight points to answer for a 21-19 edge. Maryville had two set points at 24-22 until the Lions used a 3-0 run as the set dragged on. The Saints again nearly won set three and were up 28-27 but Lindenwood scored the final three points to end the match. Lakin led the team with 11 kills, while Selman and Timmermann both chipped in six kills. Campbell had 21 digs to lead the defensive efforts.
 
Versus Georgian Court, set one was tied at 4-4 before a Kara Wright kill started a 4-0 run. Maryville still led 12-9 and put the set away with a 5-0 burst. Lakin had a kill, with Wright and Selman following up with terminations of their own. After a Taylor Luebbers ace, Wright capped the run with another kill for a 17-9 lead. In set two, the Saints had kills on four of the first five points. After a GCU point, the Saints scored four consecutive points, highlighted by back-to-back kills by Timmermann, for an 8-2 edge. Maryville maintained the lead at 15-10 and sealed the win with a 6-0 run and a 21-10 lead. In the third set, the contest was close and the Saints trailed 17-15. Emma Basler had a kill, and Timmermann and Arndt teamed up for a block. After a Timmermann kill and a GCU error, an Arndt kill put the Saints ahead 20-17. However, Georgian Court bounced back and scored two straight. Timmermann had a kill, and a block by the tandem of Zeiter and Selman restored a 22-19 advantage. GCU again cut the lead to 23-22 but kills by Arndt and Basler ended the match. Selman had 12 kills to lead the Saints, while Timmermann added 10 kills while hitting .571. Luebbers topped the team with 14 digs. The Saints hit .308 while holding GCU to a .064 mark. The victory is the first for first-year Saints head coach Ashlee Brockenbrough.
 
Maryville is 1-1 and returns to the court Saturday at Hyland Arena with a 9 am contest versus Northwest Missouri State, and a 4:30 match against Sioux Falls.