With a pair of victories on Saturday, the High Point volleyball team made school history by capturing the tournament title at the Friar Invitational. It was the first time in their seven-year NCAA Division I era that the Panthers have captured a regular-season tournament crown.

HPU, now 8-5 on the year, won all four matches this weekend including their straight game wins on Saturday over Gardner-Webb (32-30, 30-26, 30-25) and Hartford (30-19, 30-25, 30-26). The victories improved the Panthers to 6-2 on their current 12-match road swing.

"This is a huge accomplishment for this team and our program," said HPU head coach Chad Esposito. "It was great to see us put everything together and play consistently for four straight matches. We played great team defense all weekend and that was the real key to our success. This gives us a huge boost of confidence as we head into conference play this week."

In the first match of the day against Gardner-Webb, sophomore Jamie Kaufman, who was named the MVP of the tournament, continued to be a major contributor for the Panthers finishing with 14 kills, 16 digs and five service aces. Senior Michelle Feiser, another All-Tournament honoree, recored her fifth triple-double of the year and second of the weekend posting 10 kills, 23 assists and 13 digs. Fellow senior Jenelle Stouffer anchored a steady back-row defensive performance with season best 26 digs.

All three games were extremely competitive with High Point setting the pace with a come-from-behind victory in game one. Trailing 29-24, HPU earned a sideout then reeled off five straight points to grab a 30-29 lead. The squad traded points before the Panthers were finally able to complete the comeback by scoring the game winning point. The win was HPU's second of the year over Gardner-Webb with the Panthers having topped the Bulldogs, 3-2, in the season opener on Aug. 30.

Versus Hartford, the Panthers dominated from the opening serve. HPU won the battle in every statistical category including a 49-32 advantage in kills and a 60-43 edge in digs. Kaufman finished with her fourth consecutive double-double recording 13 kills and 11 digs. Feiser just missed a triple-double after posting 11 kills, 27 assists and eight digs. Stouffer and freshman Lauren Hatch shared team defensive honors with 15 digs each.

The Panthers continue their month-long stretch of matches away from the Millis Athletic Center on Wednesday night when they visit Winthrop for their Big South Conference season opener.