CHARLESTON, Ill. -- Senior All-Tournament honoree Liz Guard led top-seeded Eastern Kentucky with 20 kills but the Colonels lost to third-seeded Jacksonville State 3-2 (30-20, 27-30, 30-27, 25-30, 15-12) in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship match Sunday afternoon at Lantz Arena.

After trailing 11-9 in game five, Jacksonville State scored six of the final seven points to earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Junior Jessica Sabath recorded 14 kills for EKU, while Amy Arlinghaus and Shelly George each posted 13. The Colonels had five players reach double-figures in digs with 2005 OVC Defensive Player of the Year Brittany Nobilio notching a team-high 29.

JSU started quickly, grabbing leads of 9-4 and 15-9 in the first game. The Colonels cut the lead to 22-19 on consecutive Gamecock attack errors, but Jacksonville State scored seven of the final eight points to take a 1-0 lead.

The Gamecocks held a slim margin for most of game two before Eastern tied the game at 21 on a block from George and junior Kasha Brozek. Jacksonville State regained the lead on the next point, and held a 26-25 lead when the Colonels went on a 5-1 run, closing out the game on a Sabath kill.

It looked as if EKU would build on that momentum, building leads of 18-15 and 20-17 in game three. However, JSU tied the score at 20-20 on a Suzi Terrell kill before taking the lead for good at 22-21 on a Colonel attack error. The Gamecocks went in front two games to one after a 30-27 triumph.

The defending OVC champs did not go down quietly, despite trailing several times in game four. With the score tied at 23, the Colonels scored four straight points, taking their largest lead of the game on a service ace from George. EKU earned a five-point victory by holding the Gamecocks to a .193 attack percentage.

In the deciding game, JSU took control early by scoring five of the first seven points. EKU came roaring back, tying the game at five on a Kelly Jennings kill. The Colonels surged to an 11-9 lead on a Jacksonville State attack error. After a Gamecock timeout, JSU scored six of the final seven points, clinching the title on a kill from OVC Player of the year Abbey Breit.

Leading the way for the Gamecocks was tourney MVP Terrell with a match-best 35 kills. Breit recorded 23 kills and added 22 digs for a double-double.

The Colonels won eight of their final nin matches and finished the 2005 season with a 23-7 overall record.


2005 O'Reilly OVC Volleyball All-Tournament Team
Southeast Missouri, Jill Miller
Tennessee State, Meesha Jackson
Eastern Kentucky, Liz Guard
Eastern Kentucky, Kelly Jennings
Jacksonville State, Suzi Terrell
Jacksonville State, Abbey Breit
Jacksonville State, Kisha West