AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University volleyball team ran their win streak to five matches on Friday night, winning their first two games at the TMU Invitational in Cleveland, Georgia. The Gyrenes swept past their opponents in the Peach State, defeating Georgetown College 25-15, 25-22, 25-18 before toppling the host Bears of Truett McConnell University 25-21, 25-13, 25-23 to move to 5-2 on the season.

The Gyrenes were dominant from the opening serve against Georgetown, jumping out to a 5-1 lead in the opening set and never looking back. Georgetown never hit better than .100 in any of the match's three sets, while the Gyrenes had an attack percentage of .100 or higher in all three frames. Ave Maria was especially dominant at the net, logging eleven blocks to just one for the Tigers.

Cabriella Bouterse and Zelie Kessler led Ave Maria's attack, posting identical lines of nine kills on 27 swings. Abbie Costlow had a monster match at the net, logging seven total blocks to go with five kills. Katie Grose and Lily Witkoski split setter duties, with Grose posting 15 assists and Witkoski adding 14. Victoria Schein led the defensive efforts with 18 digs, while Grose added 13 to post a double-double for AMU.

AMU's attack efforts remained on point in the second match, as the Gyrenes swept past the tournament's host school. After eleven blocks in the opener, Ave Maria added ten more, holding TMU to a .000 attack percentage in each of the final two sets. The Gyrenes' attack percentage was better than .250 in two of the three sets, and the Gyrenes racked up 40 kills in just three sets of play against the Bears.

Maddie Haut and Costlow formed a formidable duo at the middle blocker for the Gyrenes, combining for 20 kills on 28 swings. Costlow added seven blocks for the second consecutive game. Witkoski and Grose once again split time at setter, combining for 31 assists (17 for Witkoski and 14 for Grose). The defensive leader in the nightcap was Schein, who posted 18 digs while Witkoski logged a double-double of her own with 12 digs.

Ave Maria will look to run their winning streak to seven matches in a row on Saturday, as the Gyrenes play their final matches before the start of Sun Conference play. Ave Maria will open the day with their second match of the season against Brenau, who AMU defeated last weekend at Life University, at noon. Action concludes with a match at 2:00 p.m., which will see the Gyrenes battle the Koalas of Columbia College from South Carolina.