AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University volleyball team remained the hottest team in The Sun Conference on Wednesday night, avenging one of their three conference losses with a four-set triumph over the Southeastern University Fire at the Rhodora J. Donahue Academy Gymnasium. The Gyrenes ran their home winning streak to 12 matches, a streak that dates back more than a year.

The Gyrenes roared out of the gate in the opening set, building an 8-2 lead in the first ten points of the match. Southeastern was able to rally, going on a 7-0 run to cut the AMU lead from 12-4 to 12-11, and eventually tying the score at 17. Ave Maria regained the momentum, scoring eight of the final eleven points of the set, capped off by a tandem block from Lily Witkoski and Madelyn Haut to give AMU a 25-20 win. 

Southeastern turned the tide of the match their way in the second set, thanks to a dominant 25-13 performance. The Fire had 18 kills to just three errors in the second, good for a .444 attack percentage, while the Gyrenes had eight kills and six errors, posting a .061 attack percentage. Southeastern's win in the second evened the match at one set apiece.

Ave Maria used a late surge to take the pivotal third set, taking control of the match. The lead traded hands several times in the early goings, with the teams eventually being tied at 14. The Gyrenes would score the next five points to take the lead for good, led by three kills in that stretch from Cabriella Bouterse. AMU led by multiple points for the remainder of the set, and a kill from Rita Campos gave the Gyrenes the lead heading to the fourth set. 

In that fourth set, the Gyrene attack came to life. 20 of Ave Maria's 25 points came on kills, while the Gyrenes committed just two errors and posted a .450 attack percentage. The main run for the Gyrenes saw AMU score 10 of 12 points early in the set, turning a 3-2 SEU lead into a 12-5 edge for Ave Maria. The lead remained in Ave Maria's possession, and Campos was again the closer to move AMU to 7-0 on the season at home. 

Bouterse led the Gyrene attack with 18 kills, while Campos added 15 and Madelyn Haut chipped in with 13. Two more school records fell on Wednesday night, starting with Victoria Schein. The junior, with 13 digs, became Ave Maria's all-time leader in career digs. From the setter position, Lily Witkoski logged 52 assists, setting a new school record for assists in a four-set match. 

AMU remains one game out of first place in The Sun Conference, and will break for a week before returning to play. The Gyrenes are back at home on October 27, taking on the Royals of Warner University. Opening serve of the match, which will see Ave Maria go for the season sweep of the Royals, is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. at the Rhodora J. Donahue Academy Gymnasium.