Richmond, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky volleyball team rallied to take a 3-2 win over Austin Peay in its regular season finale on Saturday afternoon, ensuring the Colonels a share of the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season title and the OVC Tournament's top seed, which allows EKU to host next week's volleyball championships (Nov. 20-22).

The Colonels (25-4, 15-1 OVC) faced a 2-1 deficit after dropping games two and three to the Lady Govs, but fought back to capture game four, 30-21, before escaping with a thrilling 15-13 victory in the final set. Austin Peay (14-15, 9-7 OVC) nearly played the role of spoiler, but fell just short after dropping games four and five. Senior Lesley Aldridge had a big night for Eastern, tallying a match-high 28 kills to go along with a career-high 34 digs in the win. Her 34 digs allowed Aldridge to overtake Becky Galati as the school's all-time digs leader, while her kill total pushed her past Lisa Tecca for sixth place all-time.

Aldridge wasn't the only Colonel with a big performance, as junior Liz Guard posted 21 kills and four blocks, while freshman Amy Arlinghaus tied her career high with 18 kills. Sophomore setter Kelly Jennings established a new career high by dishing out 74 assists to along with 15 digs. Brittany Nobilio tied Aldridge with 34 digs, which set a new career best for the freshman libero and marked her sixth match of the year with 30-or-more digs.

Eastern came out and built a 9-3 lead through the early goings of game one, as a block by sophomores Denise Grundhoefer and Kasha Brozek pushed the EKU lead to six points prior to an Austin Peay timeout. The Lady Govs battled back and pulled within a point, 16-15, after a hitting error by the Colonels. The contest stayed close the rest of the way with Eastern holding on to a slim 26-25 edge before an APSU ball handling error made it 27-25. Brozek and sophomore Jessica Sabath came up with a solo block and a kill down the stretch, respectively, helping EKU pull out a 30-26 victory.

Austin Peay recovered to take the next two games by the slimmest of margins (30-28, 33-31). The Lady Govs found themselves ahead 15-14 in the game two after a service ace by Laura Wussow. The Colonels were forced to play from behind the rest of the way, though they tied the score at 23-all after an APSU hitting error. A kill by Aldridge brought Eastern within two points, 28-26, but Austin Peay scored its final two points on EKU service errors en route to the 30-28 win.

Game four was another closely contested bout, with EKU building a 22-20 lead after a block and a kill by Guard on consecutive plays. Eastern pushed its advantage to four points, 27-23, after a kill by Aldridge, but the Lady Govs kept the game alive and denied EKU at game point after Eastern went ahead 29-27 off a kill by Guard. APSU tallied three-straight points and led 30-29 before the Colonels called timeout to regroup. EKU managed to fend off two game point attempts by the Lady Govs, and even tied the game at 31-all thanks to a kill by Aldridge, but Austin Peay scored the final two points to take a 33-31 victory.

EKU ran out to a 9-3 edge from the onset of game four before seeing its lead cut to a point, 12-11. Eastern built its lead to 20-16 off a kill by Aldridge, then went on to outscore its opponents 10-5 down the stretch to pick up a 30-21 win and keep the match alive. Austin Peay hit just .078 in the fourth game compared to a .317 mark by the Colonels.

The deciding game lived up to the standards set by the first four contests, as the two teams traded punches all the way to a 13-all tie score before EKU tallied the last two points to escape with a 15-13 victory. Eastern led 6-5 early on after a kill by Aldridge, but Austin Peay responded with a 4-0 run to go on top 9-6. The Lady Govs held an 11-7 advantage before EKU rattled off a 4-0 run of its own, capped off by a kill from Guard, to tie the game at 11-all. The Colonels took a one-point lead, 14-13, after an APSU hitting error before Guard capped off the match with a solo block.

Eastern established new season highs with 85 kills and 131 digs in the win. Sabath posted 22 digs, while junior Libby Schleisman accounted for a career-high 18 digs. The Colonels registered 14 total team blocks, led by eight from Brozek. APSU was led by senior Sarah Schramka, who finished with a team-high 21 kills and 17 digs in the losing effort.