Box Score BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- After giving up a 2-0 match lead and falling behind in the fifth set, Samford fought back from a five-point deficit to pull out a gutsy win over Appalachian State in front of an electric Pete Hanna Center crowd Saturday night.
 
"I'm really proud of the way our team played tonight," said Head Coach Derek Schroeder.  "This was one of the first matches where we just had to gut out a win late and we pulled through against a tough Appalachian State squad."
 
Samford (11-8, 2-2 SoCon) was bested in nearly every statistical column by Appalachian State (10-8, 1-3 SoCon), but in a flipped script from Friday night's loss, it was a late 11-4 run in the fifth by the Bulldogs that made all the difference.  Samford's two offensive anchors, Michaela Reesor and Katie Murphy, led the team with 19 and 17 kills, respectively, while Chelsi Carter improved her personal-best mark yet again with 28 digs tonight.
 
In addition to Murphy, Samford's three other seniors played key roles in the clutch win.  Stephanie Palmer paced the offense with 55 assists, Taylor Palmer was a force up front with a career-high two solo blocks and six block assists and Taylor Chao was a scrappy defender with 10 digs off the bench.
 
Appalachian State came in with the early energy in set one, leading 7-5 before Samford responded with three in a row to retake the lead, 8-7.  Later, up 11-10, Reesor and Murphy slammed down a pair of kills to move up 13-10 as the Mountaineers took a timeout.  The set remained tight but the Bulldogs would not give up the lead, eventually reaching set point up 24-19.  The Mountaineers briefly staved off the 25th point with two of their own, but Murphy sealed it with a kill as the Bulldogs won 25-21 to take a 1-0 match lead.
 
The Samford offense exploded out of the gate in set two, with seven kills by five different Bulldogs helping build a significant 11-3 lead.  Nearing a double-digit lead, up 15-6, The Mountaineers began to close the gap, scoring four unanswered to make it 15-10 as Samford took a timeout.  A 4-1 Samford run widened the gap back up to 19-11, but Appalachian State again answered back to draw within five, 20-15.  Four different Bulldogs earned kills in the closing stages of set two, with Kihana Wicks capping it to give Samford the 25-17 win and a 2-0 match lead.
 
Prior to tonight's match , Samford held a 9-0 record when winning set one and a 10-3 when winning set two.  Appalachian State refused to become another statistic as they came out rejuvenated in set three.  Leading 9-6, the Mountaineers began to pull away with four points in a row to make it 13-6 as Samford took a timeout.  Appalachian State doubled-up Samford, leading 18-9, before a 4-1 Samford run cut it to 19-13.  Samford hoped to make a late comeback, earning the side-out point and taking possession trailing 23-16.  A pair of Mountaineer kills ended any comeback chance however as Appalachian State avoided the sweep with a 25-16 set three win.
 
Feeling a shift in momentum, Appalachian State had its mind set on the improbable comeback.  Set four was neck-and-neck with Samford holding a slight lead until the Mountaineers finally took their first lead of the frame near the midway point, 14-13.  The Bulldogs fought back to retake the lead, 16-15, as Appalachian State regrouped with a timeout.  The break spurred a huge Mountaineer run, as a 9-1 run gave them set point, 24-17, with Samford burning both its timeouts in the process.  Appalachian State went on to win 25-18 and force a fifth set for the second time this weekend.
 
The Hanna Center crowd rose to its feet as the fifth set started, with Samford needing a big momentum shift to pull out the win.  The Appalachian State offense continued to frustrate the Bulldogs, with the Mountaineers building a 9-4 lead.  A kill by Gabbi Greenwald lit a fire in the Bulldog offense, as they charged back with five unanswered points to tie the set at 9-9 but could not take the lead, as Appalachian State built a 12-10 lead.  A pair of kills by Murphy and a Mountaineer attack error gave Samford back the lead, 13-12, as the visitors took a timeout.  An Appalachian State kill tied it up at 13-13 but a kill by Murphy gave the Bulldogs set point ,14-13, and a block by Taylor Palmer and Stephanie Palmer sealed it as the Bulldog bench stormed the court to celebrate the gutsy comeback win.
 
Next week, Samford continues its conference slate with a pair of road matches.  The Bulldogs head north for a midweek matchup with Chattanooga (2-17, 1-3 SoCon) on Wednesday, Oct. 9 at 7 p.m. ET before facing Davidson (11-6, 2-2 SoCon) on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 6 p.m. ET.