Box Score Town and Country, Mo. - - A late rally by Cumberland wasn't enough as they ultimately fell in five sets to Maryville. 

Joao Infante had a huge night in kills with 22 and a .400 hitting percentage and two blocks. Zendai Richards and Nage Hendrickson had 12 and 10 kills respectively. Hendrickson also helped out on the defensive end with five blocks. Francesco Corradini had a .375 hitting percentage paired with two aces and four blocks. Alexander Heuer helped out in defense with seven digs. Cumberland finished with a team hitting percentage of .240 with Maryville slightly ahead on .270.

The first set began with both teams picking up points and battling to gain a lead at 5-5. Maryville went on a four point run to put some breathing space between them and the Phoenix. Ultimately Cumberland gave up too many points on errors in the first set, as back to back kills saw the Saints take the set 19-25.

The second set started much like the first, with both teams battling to gain the lead, and it was Maryville who got their noses in front again with some big kills making it 6-10. The Phoenix clawed back a few points through kills from Hendrickson and Infante and kept themselves within touching distance, however, the Saints remained ahead at 10-16. Cumberland went on a four point run of their own including two Richards kills to bring the set back to 14-16. Maryville were quick to answer and went on a four run point of their own before taking a timeout at 17-24. The Saints grabbed the last point and finished the set 17-25.

Maryville got off to a quick start in the third set going on a four point run, which consisted of two kills and two Cumberland errors. The Phoenix went on a run of their own, gaining five points and taking the set to 7-6, with a Kuehler kill and two blocks by Infante and Hendrickson. Cumberland had gained some momentum, and with a kill by Zendai and a Corradini ace pushed their lead to 13-9 and forced a Saints timeout. Both teams traded points in what was a competitive set, as the Phoenix held a narrow 15-13 lead. A four point run at the end of the set was sealed with a Corradini ace for CU to take the set 25-19.

The fourth set followed the same patterns as the previous sets with both teams getting points on the board in the opening encounters. Maryville were first to gain some momentum going up 6-9. The saints capitalized on a phoenix attack error and paired with some big kills called a time out up 9-14. Cumberland clawed back some points and brought the set back to 16-16, with Infante getting a big kill, and Hendrickson and Corradini making a block at the net. Maryville gifted Cumberland four points with four errors taking the set to 20-18. Back to back Infante kills ensured the Phoenix picked up the fourth set and forced the fifth. 

Infante put up three big kills to put the Phoenix up 3-2 in the fifth set. Both teams battled back and forth with only one point separating them at 7-8. Maryville found a rhythm late in the set to make it 10-14 and took a timeout. The Phoenix grabbed one point back, but the Saints took the set 11-15. 

The Phoenix are back in action next week as they travel to Elgin, Illinois to face Judson University.