BREVARD, N.C. - The Newberry College volleyball team (9-5, 1-0 South Atlantic Conference) shined in its first conference performance of the year. The team put together a complete effort and beat Brevard (6-3, 0-2 SAC) in straight sets - 25-20, 25-21, 25-17.

Newberry came out determined in the opening set and pulled ahead with an early lead. A kill by Brianna Blakely (Houston, Texas) off of an assist from Kara Harris (Grandview, Texas) put Newberry ahead by a score of 12-6. On the following point, Blakely returned the favor, setting Harris up for the kill and forcing Brevard into a timeout. Brevard stormed back after the timeout with six consecutive points, but Newberry held off the charge until a Lorena Maia (Belo Horizonte) kill earned Newberry the win.

The second set also saw Newberry jump out to an early lead, this time through Blakely's serving. The Tornados were not deterred however, and fought hard to keep the set close. The second set saw five ties, but Brevard never led and Newberry played well down the stretch to close it out by a score of 25-21.

Brevard jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the third set, but Newberry kept its focus and stayed in it. The scarlet and gray went on key runs at pivotal points in the set and took the third and final set by a score of 25-17.

Kember Lichtie (Amarillo, Texas) led the way for Newberry College, earning a double-double with 12 kills and 11 digs. Fernanda Frey (Sao Paulo, Brazil) again proved she is worthy of the preseason all-SAC award she received at the beginning of the year. The senior proved her versatility as more than just an attacker by racking up 13 digs. Lindsey Hollingsworth (Charleston, S.C.) was the team's leader in digs with 15.

In addition to earning the conference win, a pair of Newberry players will see their names climb higher in Newberry College's all-time record book. Blakely recorded 34 more assists in the match, moving her into fourth place all-time in the career assist category with 1,895 assists. Maia also moved up in the ranks, as she moved into second place in career kills with 981 and sixth place in career blocks with 220.

Newberry continues SAC competition this week with a match on Friday, September 18, at Lincoln Memorial and Saturday, September 19, at Carson-Newman.