Box Score STATESBORO, Ga. – After taking the first two sets of the Sun Belt Conference title match, Appalachian State University volleyball let the lead slip away and fell to the top-ranked Red Wolves of Arkansas State 3-2 on Sunday afternoon.

The Mountaineers (22-8, 13-3 Sun Belt) opened up the match determined to win a championship. After trading points in the opening moments of the first set, the Red Wolves (28-1, 16-0 Sun Belt) had built a small two-point advantage and extended it to three at 15-12. App State would battle back and regain the lead on a 5-0 run sparked by a kill from Alana Shoff.

Following an A-State attack error, Emily Corrigan strung together three-straight kills.

With both team vying for some breathing room, A-State went ahead 21-18 but App State clawed back and tied it at 23-23 with the help of kills from Corrigan and Jess Keller. Both teams would tie three more times until it was 26-26. A kill from Corrigan and an attack error from Kelsey Reis sealed the set victory for App State.

In the second set, A-State got out to an 8-3 lead forcing a Mountaineer timeout. The Apps would slowly work their way back into the set and a 5-1 run would bring them to within one at 11-10. Three kills from Ashton Gregory (Yadkinville, N.C./Starmount/Furman) and back-to-back kills from Keller would spark the run.

App State would finally come back and tie the set at 18-18 on consecutive kills from Corrigan and Keller. Tying the set would come as part of a 9-1 run from App State to finish the set and take a commanding 2-0 lead in the match over the No. 1 seed Red Wolves.

The Red Wolves would get out to a 10-6 lead in the third set to force an App State timeout. Unfortunately, the Mountaineers wouldn't be able to bring it to within a three-point deficit and dropped the set 25-18.

The fourth set would be one that the Mountaineers would never lead. They would tie A-State at 5-5, but that's the closest they would get. A-State built a narrow three point lead at 10-7 following two Mountaineer attack errors and a kill from Darby Graff. Later in the set, App State would get to within one at 21-20, but could not overcome and a 4-1 run would seal the set for A-State 25-21.

With the championship match tied at 2-2, it came down to a fifth and final deciding set. With both teams matching each other in the opening moments, it was A-State that garnered a gap that helped propel them to the championship. With the set tied 5-5, the Red Wolves generated a 4-0 run sparked from a Shoff attack error that could have gone either way.

Three more attack errors had the Red Wolves sitting comfortabley and they were able to fend off App State and clinch the Sun Belt tournament championship.

Keller led the attack with 26 kills, while Corrigan notched 21 and Gregory contributed 19 in the loss. Paige Brown recorded a career-high 65 assists in the effort and will finish her career as the new career assist leader with sit at 4,478. Corrigan will finish second all-time in career kills with 1,399 and Keller cracked the top ten and sits 10th with 1,210.

Meghan Mahoney will finish second all-time in career digs with 1,855.

Appalachian's season ends with back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since 2005-2006.