ATHENS, W.Va. – The Concord University volleyball team started the Concord Classic by bagging a pair of wins over Davis & Elkins and Elizabeth City State inside the Carter Center Friday evening.

The Mountain Lions are 5-6 on the season after the victories.

Match 1: Concord 3 – Davis & Elkins 0 (25-16, 25-9, 25-17)
CU needed just over an hour to dispatch the Senators in straight sets.

The Mountain Lions racked up a season-high 12 aces and forced Davis & Elkins into 25 errors compared to allowing just 19 kills by the Senators.

In the first set, Davis & Elkins hung around as it only trailed by four points, 7-3, before Concord ripped off seven straight points to gain the breathing room it would need to win the opener by nine points. D&E only got as close as eight points as with the comfortable cushion 15 players saw the court in the opening game.

The second set was all about the service game for the Maroon and Gray as senior libero Allie Davis stood on the service line for 14 straight points. Trailing 4-2 when Davis took the ball, Concord led 14-4 when a 12-0 run was finally snapped. Davis threw in three straight aces in the middle of the run. Junior right side Maddie Stull tallied three kills, and Davis added a fourth ace to cap the spurt. Senior outside hitter Meg Williams netted a pair of aces herself while sophomore middle hitter Addie Adkins had an ace near the end of the game.

D&E hung around in the third set until a string of three straight points turned a five-point lead into an eight-point advantage just past the halfway point. Kills by Adkins and Stull coupled with an attack error by Davis & Elkins took the edge out to 18-10, and the Senators never got closer than seven points as a kill from senior outside hitter Chloe Thompson ended the match.

Adkins, Stull and Thompson all finished with eight kills. Davis and Williams both had four aces with Davis chipping in a team-best 14 digs. Senior setter Paige Richmond had 12 assists.

Match 2: Concord 3 – Elizabeth City State 1 (25-22, 25-16, 23-25, 26-24)
The Mountain Lions couldn't quite complete a sweep of ECSU in the nightcap, but also nearly needed five sets to begin the Concord Classic 2-0.

After winning the first two sets, CU used the momentum to jump out to a 9-2 lead in the third as Adkins and freshman middle hitter Alivia Stover combined for a block. Undeterred, Elizabeth City State came storming back with an elongated 14-5 run to lead 16-14. Still trailing 24-18, Concord put pressure on the Vikings as they ripped off five straight points, including a kill each from Stull and Thompson to start the spurt. Elizabeth City State, though, was able to fend off Concord.

The Mountain Lions found themselves in a similar situation in the fourth game as they trailed 24-22, but a kill from Adkins, and an ECSU attack error tied the game, then Williams came through with a kill before Adkins beat the block down the middle to finish off the Vikings in four sets. Before the late run, Concord's last lead had been 16-15 in the fourth.

CU scored three of the final five points in a tightly-contested first set with Stull closing the game. And Concord only trailed 1-0 in the second set as it eased its way to a nine-point win.

Thompson notched 13 kills. Four other Mountain Lions had at least seven kills with Adkins and Williams both tallying nine. Richmond finished a dig shy of a double-double with 23 assists and nine digs. Davis came up with 25 digs while junior defensive specialist Gretchen Davila came off the bench with 10 digs and three service aces.

Concord faces Elizabeth City State once again in its home tournament 11:00 a.m. Saturday before squaring off with Mercer County rival Bluefield State at 3:00 p.m.