STATESBORO– Georgia Southern volleyball (19-6, 9-5 Sun Belt) tied its record for conference wins in the Sun Belt, earning its ninth over Appalachian State (13-12, 4-10 SBC) and locking its position as the third seed in the conference tournament with a 3-1 victory on Saturday.

Before the game, seniors Ally Barnhart, Callaway Cason, Ainsley Clifford, Rebekah Farthing and Chamblee Russell were honored as part of the senior day ceremony.

"The best thing you can do for a senior class is to send them out with a win, and we did that," head coach Chad Willis said. "Outside of all the kills, digs, assists and aces, we're proud of who the seniors are and how they continue to elevate the program and everyone around it."

In what became a marathon first set, the Eagles came out on top 29-27. Reagan Barth bookended the set with the first and last kill after App had a 4-0 run to tie the game at 24. Barth had six kills in the first stanza.

The second set was all Georgia Southern, storming to a 25-13 lead and ending with a 5-0 run. Paige Powers had back-to-back kills to close out the Mountaineers and lead 2-0.

The third set appeared that it was headed for another Eagles win up 21-13, but the visitors went on a 12-1 run to storm to a 24-23 advantage. The squads traded points, but it was the Mountaineers who won, taking it 28-26.

In the final set, the Eagles used the hot hand of Barth to win 25-20. At one point, the freshman had six consecutive kills, stretching her total to 22, one off a career-high.

The Eagles out-blocked the visitors by a 13-1 margin, with Barnhart recording nine total.

"Emotions were high, especially at the beginning, because it was our last home game," Barnhart said. "I think we came together really well and played how we practiced all week."

Barth's 22 kills were a match-high, while Cason (23 ast, 10 digs) and Powers (14 kills, 10 digs) each had a double-double in the match.

"Today was kind of bittersweet, but we do have a lot more games left to play," Cason said. "I'm really excited to continue playing with this team this season, especially heading into Foley. I think we have a great track to make it to the NCAA Tournament."

The Eagles closed their season at Hanner Fieldhouse with a 12-3 home record, losing a total of 11 sets and sweeping ten of those 15 matches.

GS has a short week, facing Troy on Thursday on the road for its final series of the season.