ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – The Flagler women's volleyball team ended the 2026 Flagler Invitational undefeated after taking Valdosta State to the fourth set in the afternoon and ending the night with an intense match against Maryville (Mo.) going to five sets.
QUOTES FROM COACH
"I thought we had some wonderful individual performances this evening, that led to a complete team victory." Jeff Reynolds said. "Maryville is a very skilled opponent and caused us some problems throughout the match. I am encouraged by our team's ability to respond in adverse situations throughout the match and work through those challenges." Reynolds said.
"It's never easy to win four straight matches, so I am extremely excited for our team and all they have been able to accomplish this weekend." Reynolds said.
Flagler vs. Valdosta State
Score: Flagler 3, Valdosta State 1 (25-19, 25-17, 22-25, 25-22)
Location: St. Augustine, Florida (Flagler Gymnasium)
Records: Flagler (5-2), Valdosta State (2-4)
The Short Story: In the opening match on day two of the Flagler Invitational, the Saints set the tone early with commanding victories in the opening sets before holding off a Blazers squad looking to mount a comeback.
OPENING VOLLEY
- Outside hitter Marley Middlebrooks paced the Saints attack with a game-high 16 kills. The junior also added a career-high 26 digs and a career-high five service aces to her line.
- Rookie Gia Lowe added 12 kills and eight digs.
- Middle blocker Katherine Rank was a key contributor at the net, turning in 10 kills and a pair of solo blocks.
- Jilly Young turned in another double-double with 25 assists and 10 digs. Fellow setter Bella Law also added a double-double with 15 assists and 10 digs.
THE DIFFERENCE
- After seeing an 11-6 lead cut down to one in the opening set, Flagler strung together 6-2 run to extend the lead back to five. The Saints capitalized on four self inflicted miscues by the Blazers and never looked back to take the opening set 25-19.
- Leading 14-12 halfway through the second frame, Flagler went on an extended 9-1 run behind eight kills from five different Saints. The big run propelled the Saints to a dominant 25-17 victory as Flagler hit a game-high .280 in the second set.
- Valdosta State flipped the script in the third set after jumping out to a 7-3 lead. The Blazers would go on a 6-3 run of their own to extend their lead to 15-10. Flagler didn't go away easy, putting together a 6-0 run to cut the Blazers lead back down to one. However, Valdosta State grabbed the third frame with a 25-22 victory to extend the match.
- Flagler got back ahead in the fourth set, putting together a 7-1 run to take an 11-5 lead. During that span, the Saints capitalized on four Blazer errors with a kill and two aces. The early run proved to be enough despite a late Blazers 7-1 run that cut the deficit back to one at 23-22. Gianovva Lowe would cap off the victory with a kill before an attacking error ended the match and secured the 3-1 victory for the Saints.
Flagler College vs. Maryville University (Mo.)
Score: Flagler 3, Maryville 2 (23-25, 25-19, 25-16, 22-25, 16-14)
Location: St. Augustine, Florida (Flagler Gymnasium)
Records: Flagler (6-2), Maryville (4-4)
The Short Story: In the marquee matchup of the weekend, featuring a pair of unbeaten teams at the Flagler Invitational, the Saints emerged victorious in a thrilling five-set battle over Maryville University.
OPENING VOLLEY
- Marley Middlebrooks capped off her dominant weekend with a dominant double-double, including 24 kills and career-high 26 digs. The 24 kills were one shy of tying her career-high set last season against Lander.
- Freshman Gia Lowe put together the best performance of her young season with a season-high 18 kills on a .333 hitting percentage. The Mooresville, North Carolina native added four digs and six block assists to her line.
- Jilly Young posted her third straight double-double by setting up the Saints offense with a season-high 61 assists and adding 15 digs on defense.
- Freshman outside Mar'ley Phillips posted her first collegiate double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs while contributing three blocks.
- Katherine Rank stuffed the stat sheet with eight kills, three aces, five digs, and a career high nine solo blocks.
THE DIFFERENCE
- Despite falling behind 14-8 halfway through the first set, Flagler strung together a 7-1 run behind three kills, two aces, and a pair of Saints errors to tie the set up 15-15. Both squads would exchange points before a Flagler attacking error, and an ace sealed the opening set victory for Maryville.
- The second set proved to be a set of runs from both teams. All tied 13-13, Flagler put together a 9-2 run, capped off by an ace from Katherine Rank to grab a 22-15 lead. The visiting Saints would respond with four straight points to cut the deficit back down to three. However, Flagler capitalized on a service error with back-to-back kills to close the set 25-19.
- Flagler carried that momentum into the third set by jumping out to a quick 13-4 lead. Flagler countered every Maryville point and saw its lead grow to as much as 12. The Saints capitalized on nine errors from Maryville and countered with a .275 hitting percentage in the set to grab a 2-1 lead on the scoreboard.
- Maryville remained collected and jumped out to a 12-7 lead in the fourth set. The Saints would inch closer behind a 6-1 run, but Maryville answered that with a 6-0 run of their own to increase their lead back to seven at 21-14. Flagler caught back up from a service error, followed by an attack error. They went on a three kill-run to make it 23-20 but it wasn't enough to hold off Maryville.
- With the Flagler being ahead for the whole game, Maryville was able to come back to tie up the match 14-14. After a kill by Lowe to put Flagler ahead 15-14, Middlebrooks came in for the last kill to win the match.
NOTABLES
- With a start of 6-2, Flagler is off to its best start since a shortened 2020 season when the Saints started the season 6-2.
- Today's victory against Maryville marked the 10th straight home victory, dating back to last season.
NEXT UP
Flagler will make their way over to Clinton, Mississippi to participate in the PBC-GSC Crossover next week, starting on Thursday, September 10th. They will open the tournament with Mississippi College at 6 p.m. (CT), then Montevallo on the 11th at 4 p.m. and will finish with Alabama-Huntsville on the 12th at 12 p.m. (CT).
