ROME -- The Lady Hawks earned a trilling five-set victory over longtime rival, Lee University, Tuesday night.

With the win, Shorter improves to 15-9 overall and 8-4 in the GSC; while the Lady Flames move to 16-8 on the year and 7-5 in conference play. The teams entered the game tied for the sixth in the conference, with the Lady Hawks moving up to a tie for third with the win.

Lee came out hot in the first set, taking a 1-0 lead in the match with a 25-11 win. Only to have Shorter bounce back in the second and third to make it a 2-1 game in favor of the hosts. The Lady Hawks won sets two and three by 25-15, 25-18 scores, respectively. The Lady Flames, however, tied things up at two sets each with a 25-17 win in the fourth.

In the fifth, and final, set Lee looked to have the upper hand, jumping out to a 7-3 lead. But, the Lady Hawks rallied, tallying four straight points to tie things up. From there, it was back and forth – with nine tie scores. Tied at 16, Shorter recorded the final two points to earn the win, first on a kill from Kelsi Jones and then on a huge block from Tiffani Estep and Morgan Cleveland to secure the win, 18-16.

Jones and Madeline Munroe led the offensive effort, with each tallying 11 kills for the night and Jones hitting a .435 for the match with two service aces. Alli Bell finished with 23 assists in the game, to go along with two aces. While, Tinsley Fain added two aces and 15 assists.

On the receiving end, Cheyenne McLemore and Bell added 14 digs each, with Cleveland adding 12. At the net, Estep did what she does best; tallying eight blocks in the game – two solo and six assists.

The Lady Hawks continue the home streak Friday as they host Montevallo in the first Gulf South matchup between the teams.