AUGUSTA, Ga. – With the defending conference champions in the house, GRU Augusta kept things tight, but couldn't pull the victory away from the Armstrong Pirates in Peach Belt Conference action on Friday night in Christenberry Fieldhouse.

The Pirates (6-1, 1-0 PBC) came out firing offensively in the PBC opener for both teams, taking the early lead in the opening set as a 6-0 run opened things up. The squad hit .353 in the first frame, foiling the Jags' (7-2, 0-1 PBC) ability to string points together.

But the Jaguars made things interesting in set three. A fiery crowd and lots of high-fives and on-court yells punctured the Christenberry Fieldhouse atmosphere as Kristen Koch's back-to-back kills gave GRU its first in-set lead at 11-10. But the Pirates answered, rattling off a 7-1 run – enough to wishtand a late home team rally highlighted by Kali Boatwright's  second service ace of the night.

On the evening, the Jags hit .111 collectively, led by Koch and Boatwright with seven kills apiece. Paige Elliott showed her efficiency, posting six kills on just 11 attacks – including a perfect 4-for-4 in the initial set – along with three block assists. Maggie Darling tacked on six kills along with a team-high eight digs. Alyssa Latham carded 19 assists.

Stephanie Sfara and Emily Wylie paced the Pirates with 10 kills apiece as Armstrong enjoyed a .318 hitting percentage on a 38-10 kill-error ratio. Kamryn Sherman had 23 kills, and Morgan Hill had nine digs.

The Jags continue their season tomorrow as they host Flagler in Peach Belt Conference action at 2:00 p.m.