TIGERVILLE, S.C. -- Belmont Abbey took the first two sets, then fought off a furious North Greenville rally to earn a thrilling 3-2 (25-21, 25-19, 23-25, 20-25, 21-19) victory in Conference Carolinas men's volleyball action Saturday night. With the win, the Crusaders improve to 13-10, 8-6 in league play and move into a tie for third place with a week left in regular-season play. NGU falls to 15-11, 8-7.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Liam Maxwell hit .439 with 24 kills in 41 attempts. He added six digs, tied for the team high.
• Brian Long tallied 13 kills and one error in 19 chances for a .632 hitting percentage.
• Brennan Davis registered 48 assists, while adding six digs.
• William Morris and Andrew Kohut posted six and five blocks, respectively.
• Belmont Abbey jumped out to a 2-0 lead with wins in the opening two sets. In the first, the Crusaders used five straight points to open an 8-4 lead and never trailed again. In the second, The Abbey broke a 10-10 tie with three straight points that turned into a 9-1 run.
• North Greenville answered with 25-23 and 25-20 wins to force a fifth set.
• In the decider, NGU held a 6-4 advantage, but The Abbey evened the set at 6.
• The teams were then tied at every point until 19-19. The Abbey had trailed 19-18 when Head Coach Nolan Albrecht called his second time out and the team responded. A kill by Maxwell tied the set for the final time, then an attack error gave BAC its fourth match point. An ace by Brennan Davis gave the Crusaders the victory.
• The Abbey saved two match points at 18-17 and 19-18.
• The match was the longest in school history by points. The 21-19 decision in the fifth topped a 20-18 win by The Abbey over Erskine last year.

UP NEXT

• Belmont Abbey wraps up the regular season next weekend with a homestand against Erskine and Emmanuel on Friday and Saturday.
• The Crusaders will earn a home date in the Conference Carolinas quarterfinals with a two wins.