CLINTON, Iowa - The Ashford University volleyball squad rallied from two sets down to claim both its first win in Kehl Arena and an opening win in Midwest Collegiate Conference play against Clarke University, 3-2, on Wednesday evening.

The Saints (9-1, 1-0 MCC) beat the Crusaders (2-2, 0-1 MCC) by scores of 19-25, 23-25, 25-18, 25-16, 15-4, to sustain their hot start to the regular season, of which has included a pair of undefeated tournament appearances in Chicago and Cedar Rapids.

"We're glad to earn our first win in conference play and there's no doubt we worked very hard for this one," AU Head Coach Micah Cewe said. "I'm proud of the way we battled back as a team tonight, but we're striving to get better in all facets of the game. We'll use this match for motivation as we get deeper into the heart of the MCC schedule."

Junior middle blocker Yawen Xiao of Shanghai, China, ripped 19 kills, senior Kelsay McCausland of Camanche added 15 more, while reigning MCC Players of the Week, Liz Gbur (Setter) of Darien, Ill., contributed 24 assists and Tara VanZuiden (Libero) dug out 20 attack attempts.

Ashford looked well on their way to grabbing early momentum, but the Crusaders snapped a 17-17 tie with a 9-2 run to ice the first set. The Saints climbed back from a five-point deficit in the second set, getting three consecutive kills from Xiao and an ace to tie at 23-all, but Clarke pulled out the final two points.

The Saints staved off defeat in the third set in convincing fashion and had the energy of the crowd back on their side as the match went on.

Still staring elimination in the face, the Saints turned the tide in a critical fourth set, regrouping after a timeout to reel off five straight points. Gbur had back-to-back service aces in the late series.

The decisive fifth set turned out to be all Ashford as the Saints opened with an insurmountable 9-1 run and had Clarke reeling after two timeouts were taken in a futile attempt to slow down the AU offense.

Clarke's Ashley Shields, the most recent MCC Hitter of the Week, led the Crusaders with 22 kills.

Ashford heads out the northwest corner of Iowa this weekend to compete at the Graceland University-hosted Pizza Shack Tournament in Lamoni. The Saints are scheduled to face Mayville State University and No. 15 Indiana Institute of Technology on Friday.

Those matches will determine opponents for Saturday with a minimum of four matches being played.