McKENZIE, Tenn. – The Martin Methodist Volleyball team kept a firm grasp on second place in the Southern States Athletic Conference standings with a 3-1 victory at Bethel (Tenn.) University Tuesday night.

In a matchup of two of the premier teams in the SSAC, the RedHawks (15-4, 6-1 SSAC) and Lady Wildcats (8-10, 4-3) went back-and-forth in a seesaw affair between the conference rivals.

The RedHawks were able to outlast the Lady Wildcats by a 30-28 margin in a tightly-contested first set.

The Lady Wildcats responded with a commanding 25-16 victory in the second set, but the RedHawks dug deep and rallied for a 25-23 victory in the third and closed the match with a 25-19 win in the fourth and final set.

Lauren Martin and Sabrie Sirmones led the RedHawks as the duo combined for 28 of the team's 46 kills on the evening. Martin netted 15 kills while Sirmones, the reigning SSAC Attacker of the Week, added 13.

Jade Paris also finished the evening with nine kills for the RedHawks.

Defensively, the RedHawks turned in 13 total team blocks and had 74 total digs. Belen Albertos Acensio led the defensive front with 27 total defensive digs.

Sydney Arnold, the reigning SSAC Setter of the Week, turned in 35 of the team's 43 total assists on the evening in the victory.

With the win, the RedHawks kept within a game of the SSAC regular-season standings lead and moved two games clear of the Lady Wildcats for second place in the standings.

The RedHawks have now won six straight, their longest winning streak since they rattled off seven consecutive victories late in the 2007 season.

The victory also lifted the RedHawks to 15 wins on the season, which marked the most in a year for the program since 2011.

Martin Methodist returns to action on Thursday, Oct. 5, in a non-conference matchup versus Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) University.

First serve is set for 7 p.m. in the Curry Christian Life Center.