HOUSTON, Texas — February 19, 2026 — LOVB Atlanta won its third consecutive match Thursday night, showing the team’s resilience by downing LOVB Houston in four sets on the road, 29-27, 16-25, 25-22, 25-21.
A flurry of service errors saw fall behind early in the first set. With the score at 11-18. Atlanta rallied with dialed-in serving five kills from opposite Ivonee Montaño to win the first set in extra points.
“I’m very proud of my team, we were down the first set and we looked for ways to win and to change the situations,” said Atlanta head coach Paulo Coco. “We found ways to work better.”
After Houston evened the match with a second-set win, Atlanta again rallied in the third, turning a 13-18 deficit into a 25-22 set victory. In the fourth, Atlanta pulled ahead with a 5-1 run late to clinch the win.
Montaño led the charge for Atlanta, finishing with 26 kills, tied for the second-best total in LOVB history. The Colombian National Teamer hit .480 on the night and added six digs, an ace and a block.
“I feel so happy because this kind of game will help us feel better and have more confidence for the next match.” Montano said.
Middle Blocker Onye Ofoegbu and outside hitter McKenzie Adams also made a strong impacts, adding 14 and 11 points, respectively. Defensively, libero Piyanut Pannoy led Atlanta with 12 digs, while Rachel Fairbanks contributed 8 digs, 3 aces, and 53 assists, setting the team to a .433 attack efficiency.
“Tonight wasn't our best volleyball, we can play a lot better, but it shows how much fight we have and sometimes that matters more than the level of play.”- Fairbanks said.
For Houston, Jordan Thompson matched Montaño’s 26 kills, adding two aces and two blocks for the second-highest point total in LOVB history.
Atlanta (4-5) heads back home to face Austin (5-5) on Sunday, February 22 at Gateway Center Arena at 2 p.m. Eastern.
