RAUCOUS ENVIRONMENT HELPS EAGLES PICK UP WIN VS. STEPHENS

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A loud home court advantage propelled Avila volleyball to a four-set win on Wednesday evening at Mabee Fieldhouse, defeating Stephens, 3-1.

"One-hundred percent the best match we've played all year," Eagles head coach Marylyn Mozena said after the win.

Avila trailed only once in the opening set and led by as many as eight on multiple occasions, winning 25-17. The Eagles were led by 14 first-set kills.

A tightly-contested second set went Stephens' way, 25-22. The Eagles trailed 10-3 early in the set, but fought back to bring the score to within one late in the frame before Stephens pulled away to tie the game at one set apiece.

The third set was back-and-forth for the entirety of the frame, capped off by five-straight dominating serves from Megan Davies to give Avila the win, 25-19.

With huge support from the Avila student section, the Eagles dominated the fourth set, winning 25-20 and taking the match.

"The student section's home court advantage was huge," said Mozena. "My first three years, we never had that. I do believe that that helped our girls perform and perform for the crowd. We had a unit behind us that was getting into Stephens' head."

In Mozena's eyes, the win was even more special because of the progress her team has made, especially after losing to Stephens on August 31:

"The biggest thing from the start of the season to now is progression and getting better. That's what we saw from Saturday's match to tonight – the growth that we've been seeing in practice. You can see the work that we're putting in in practice is paying off. Over the last three or four days, we've seen huge strides and we're just going to keep taking that momentum."

The win was big for sophomore Megan Davies, who finished the night with 13 kills, including her 100^th of the young season. Additionally, Daphne Gardner's 24 assists put her past the 100-assist mark on the season. Gardner (.263) and Sydney Owens (.234) each hit over .200 in the match as well.

The Eagles look to continue their winning ways at home with two matches on Friday vs. Mission (2 PM) and Kansas Christian College (6 PM). Following Avila all season long at @Avila_Athletics and AvilaAthletics.com