Four players had at least eight kills as the University of Pikeville picked up a 3-0 win over Spartanburg Methodist (S.C.) College on Friday night.
 
The win pushed UPike's win streak to three straight and evened their season record for the first time at 11-11. More importantly, the Bears are now 8-3 in AAC play.
 
The Pioneers are now 9-15 on the season, 4-8 in the league.
 
Senior Theresa Romero and sophomore Cassidy Rivas had nine kills apiece for the Bears, while senior Alondra Ayende and sophomore Olivia Chapman recorded eight each.
 
Junior setter Chloie Brinton led the Bears with 38 assists and three service aces.
 
Defensively, junior middle Lanie Hawley had five block assists, half of her team's total. Sophomore Ashtyn Filkins had 10 digs to pace the team.
 
UPike will have to sleep quick, returning to the UPike Gym on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. for a battle with Columbia International (S.C.) University.
 
Bears 25, Pioneers 17: SMC scored the first four points of the game before UPike got on the scoreboard. Trailing 10-7, Brinton delivered an assist on a Rivas kill and then went to serve on what proved to be an 8-0 run. She had a service ace, and the other six points were on attack errors to make it 15-10. The lead was 18-14 when a Romero kill started a three-point run from which the Pioneers could not recover.
 
Bears 25, Pioneers 12: An early kill by Romero put the Bears on top 3-1. The score was tied once, at 4-4, before UPike scored six unanswered points that featured four kills by Ayende. A 6-1 stretch later saw three different Bears record kills, including two by Hawley, to push the lead to 17-7. UPike scored four of the final five points and closed out the win on a service ace by senior Jordan Roberts.
 
Bears 25, Pioneers 21: The Pioneers only scored more than two points in a row once when they posted four straight, the last coming on kills by senior Leilani Campbell and sophomore Rebekah Martin to take an 8-7 lead. The Bears immediately responded with a 6-1 run that started with a kill by Chapman and ended with one by Rivas to take a 13-9 lead. UPike's biggest lead was only four points, which happened four times, including on a kill by senior Gracey Lovgren to finish it.