Bangor, ME -  Husson University and Maine Maritime Academy are no strangers to each other when it comes to North Atlantic Conference volleyball play.

The two schools have played numerous heated matches over the last few seasons, and they split their two matches last year with Husson winning in the regular season and MMA coming out on top come playoff time.  

Both teams came into Wednesday night's bout looking for their first NAC victory of the season, and the Mariners would end up coming away with it in straight sets (25-9, 25-15, 25-14).  

Serving was the key for the evening for the Mariners, as they were able to put away 16 aces in the three games.  MMA also posted 31 kills on the match, compared to just nine for the Eagles.  

Game one set the tone for the night as the Mariners tallied 11 kills on 23 attacks with just one error, good for a .435 hitting average.  Husson was able to hang tight in the early going, trailing 11-6, before Jess Menges went on a seven-point run from the service position to give the Mariners a comfortable lead they would not relinquish.  

The two teams would trade a few points back-and-forth to start game two before MMA forced a side-out that would rotate Gillian O'Neal to the service position.  She would then lead the Mariners on an eight-point run, highlighted by five straight aces, that gave them a comfortable 11-3 lead.  

With Eagles' standout freshman Lindsey Chapman (Gorham, ME) out of the contest due to an ankle injury suffered early-on in game two, it looked like the Mariners would run away with another win.  But with Husson trailing 15-6, Chapman was able to muster up enough strength to come back into the match, which seemed to give Husson new life.  The Eagles would go on a 9-1 run that got them right back into the game at 16-15, and force MMA into a timeout.

That break would prove to be pivotal, as the Mariners would subsequently go on a nine-point run of their own that staked them out to a 2-0 lead in the match.  

Game three started out all-Mariners, as they jumped to a quick 6-0 lead.  The Eagles weren't able to come within any less than eight points from there on out, as MMA finished up the sweep.  

"It was a tough loss, and I definitely think we could have played better," Husson coach Jodie Faribank said after the match.  "Lindsey getting injured during the game was tough because she's one of our best all-around players, and she wasn't quite the same after that.  

"When we were playing the way we know we can, it was good.  We just couldn't keep momentum going."

The Mariners were led by Melissa Lail with 11 kills on the match, while O'Neal put away nine and Sydney Robertson added seven.  Samantha Tumolo directed the Mariners offense with 30 assists, and she also matched O'Neal with five aces.  

The Eagles were led offensively by Kristen Atwood (Cumberland, ME) with three kills, while Kara Graham (East Machias, ME) and Casey Lopes (New Bedford, MA) each picked up 11 digs.  Lopes also added eight assists for Husson.  

The Mariners improve to 11-7 (1-1 NAC) with the win, while Husson falls to 8-16 (0-2 NAC) with the loss.

Husson will travel to Lyndonville, VT this weekend for two more NAC matches.  The Eagles will play Johnson State College on Saturday at noon, followed by a meeting with Lyndon State College at 4 p.m.