SALISBURY, Md. - The Salisbury University volleyball team rallied, down 2-1, to beat Virginia Wesleyan College in five games to close out its regular-season schedule with an impressive 3-2 victory Saturday afternoon at the Maggs Center.

The Sea Gulls won the match 30-27, 29-31, 27-30, 30-26, 15-11 and will now set their sights on the 2006 Capital Athletic Conference tournament where SU is the No. 2 seed. Salisbury will host No. 7 seed Mary Washington at 7 p.m., Tuesday, October 31.

Salisbury (21-12) took the first game, 30-27, as sophomore Jaime Marzocchi recorded seven straight points off her serve. Junior Lynn Cipollone had a critical block late in the game to stop a Virginia Wesleyan rally.

The Marlins (18-8) bounced back in the second and third games as they were forced to go the distance against the Sea Gulls. In each game, Salisbury held a seven point edge at one time before letting the lead slip away to the pesky Marlins. Virginia Wesleyan used long scoring runs to put Salisbury up against the wall heading into the fourth game down 1-2.

Salisbury regrouped behind senior Abbey Petrecca who finished with 47 assists and 19 digs. Strong offensive contributions came from sophomore hitters Stacey Krebs and Lucy Rushing who tallied 15 and 17 kills, respectively. Freshman Savannah Tinsley finished with three service aces as her late-game serving helped the Gulls stave off the gritty Marlins.

In the fifth and decisive game, SU and VWC traded eight consecutive points before Salisbury surged to a 10-5 lead. Again, the Marlins closed the gap to make the score 11-10 until some unforced errors cost them. Salisbury seized control and prevailed 15-11 in the final frame to take the match 3-2.

"We made a commitment to each other not to give up big runs," said Salisbury coach Margie Knight. "We played more of a side out game and got back to fundamentals."