JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - Kelsey Augustine blocked for match point as SIUE volleyball defeated Jacksonville State in a thrilling 25-20, 23-25, 30-28, 24-26, 15-13 victory.

Augustine picked up her career-high eighth block on match point. She collected five of the eight in the fifth set as SIUE improved to 8-15 overall and 3-8 in the Ohio Valley Conference.

"Her level of play stepped up. She rose to the occasion. It was great," said SIUE Head Coach Leah Johnson.

Jacksonville State fell to 6-16 overall and 4-8 in the OVC.

Johnson lauded her entire team for a great effort as the team ended a four-match swing in the OVC with a win on the road. Johnson pointed to SIUE's balanced attack as Augustine and Julia Whitfield led the Cougars with 16 kills each. Brooke Smith and Cori Harris added 14 and 12 kills, respectively. SIUE hit .240 for the match.

Johnson said she saw more of the team's personality come out after Friday night's loss at Tennessee Tech. "Our goal today was to be as composed as possible while enjoying the match," she added.

Saturday's performance provided big numbers in a several areas. SIUE finished with 111 digs, the most since the Cougars went five sets with Eastern Michigan during the 2008 season.

Freshman libero Chelsea Colclasure led SIUE with 37 digs, which is the second most by a Cougar in school history and the most since volleyball changed its scoring structure to rally scoring.

"Our defense really went up a level," said Johnson. The Cougar coach noted SIUE's improvement in blocking that has helped the defense to do a better job.

SIUE finished with a season-high 12.5 blocks against the Gamecocks with seven different players recording a block. Augustine had eight while Smith added a career-high five. Johnson said Smith's emergence on the left side with a career high in kills for a second straight day has given SIUE a lift.

"We've been stressing to the players to be more aggressive. She (Smith) is playing very aggressive," said Johnson. "We've been playing more free. That's going to pay off in the long run."

The Cougars and the Gamecocks had their fans on the edge of the seats in every set. The third and the fourth set needed extra points to find a winner.

In the fifth set, SIUE found itself down 4-1 when Johnson called a timeout. Johnson called it a proud moment. "They came over to the bench and looked each other in the eye. They decided this was their time." SIUE would even the score at 6-6 and pulled ahead behind the serving from Whitfield, Colclasure, and Smith.

Saturday marked the point where SIUE has now seen every OVC team at least once. Johnson said her team is ready to be much smarter in the second half of the OVC season.

"We have been pleased with how well we've competed in every set and every match," said Johnson. SIUE and its opponents have been within four points in 29 of 47 conference sets this season.

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