CRETE, Neb. – When the pressure was at its greatest, College of Saint Mary was at its best on Wednesday night.

Trailing two sets to one, the Flames dominated the final two sets, finishing off Doane University 25-23, 20-25, 17-25, 25-14, 15-6 in Great Plains Athletic Conference volleyball action at the Haddix Center.

"We really had to dig deep and we did,'' CSM Coach Rick Pruett said. "I'm really proud of the ladies for finding that energy in sets four and five.''

The Flames improved to 13-12 overall and 6-8 in GPAC play, while Doane dropped to 12-17 and 3-11.

With the score tied 5-5 in the fourth set, the Flames went on a 13-3 run to break it open. Azaria Green, Caitlin McCormack and Caylin Barnett notched two kills each during that stretch, and Kathryn Gaughen added an ace. CSM cruised the rest of the way, hitting .353 overall in the fourth set, sending it to a fifth and a race to 15.

CSM pounded the ball at Doane from all angles in the fifth, hitting a sizzling .500. With the score tied at 2-2, the Flames ran off five straight points, getting kills from Jadeyn Smidt, Madalyn Welp and Green in that run. The Tigers never got closer than four the rest of the way as CSM continued to attack with some aggressive but controlled play.

"Our offense came alive in sets four and five and really put the pressure on them,'' Pruett said. "Our outside hitters came through in the late sets with some big kills. Jadeyn was a spark off the bench when we needed to shore up our blocking, and she had some great swings offensively.''

CSM displayed a balanced offensive attack with four players reaching double-figure kills: Welp (14), Barnett (13), McCormack (12) and Mya Weber (10). Green added eight kills and hit a stellar .368 to go with a team-best five block assists.

Kaitlin Busby had an outstanding night with 35 assists and Kennedy Buck added 15. Krissy Radicia registered 25 digs and Elen Pruett had 22. The duo earned praise from Rick Pruett for their defensive efforts.

"Krissy and Elen were awesome in the back row,'' he said. "We refused to let balls drop on the floor. A big win for us on the road.''

The Flames are back in action for their regular-season home finale on Saturday at 3 p.m. with a GPAC match against Hastings College. It will be Senior Day.