LOUISVILLE, Kentucky – April 11, 2026 – LOVB Atlanta saw its 2026 season come to an end Saturday night after losing a golden set 15-8 to LOVB Austin at the LOVB Playoffs.
“It’s different because of the loss, but I’m taking the good things we did during the season,” said Atlanta head coach Paulo Coco. “I never played six sets in one day, and I’m proud of our team, the way they fought, the improvement throughout the season, and all the times where we … showed a lot of effort.”
Atlanta showed plenty of that effort Saturday night, beating Austin, 25-23, 19-25, 25-22, 29-31, 15-11, just to get to the golden set. LOVB’s new postseason structure features two rounds of two-set series. If a series is tied one match apiece, a golden set to 15 points is used to break the tie. The first five sets that No. 2 Atlanta and No. 3 Austin played Saturday – which Atlanta won – made up match two of the semifinal series. The final set – the golden set that Austin won – decided who advanced to next week’s LOVB Championship and who was eliminated.
Austin won the first match of the series in three sets Friday.
Play the entire night Saturday was tightly contested. Atlanta won the first set, Austin countered in the second, and Atlanta re-took the lead with a win in the third. The fourth set was most emblematic of the night, featuring 18 tie scores, eight lead changes and six deuce points. Austin needed seven set points to finally close out the elongated frame, 31-29, but Atlanta never trailed in the fifth, clinching it 15-11 to force the golden set.
During that fifth set, Atlanta opposite Ivonee Montaño broke a pair of League One Volleyball records. She ended the match with 35 points and 31 kills, each new league bests. The Colombian national team athlete hit .306 and added 14 digs and two blocks in one of the top all-around performances in LOVB history.
“[Ivonee Montaño] had an amazing game,” rookie outside hitter Eva Hudson said about her teammate. “That is something to hold our heads high on. I’m proud of the fight and heart we showed.”
Outside hitter McKenzie Adams added 22 points – 19 kills, two aces, one block – while Hudson (12) and Tia Jimerson (10) also scored in double figures.
Setter Rachel Fairbanks made 61 assists to set a new LOVB Atlanta record, and the team hit .278 during the match.
In the golden set, it was Austin’s turn to dictate pace. They never trailed, using a four-point run to turn a 3-3 tie into a 7-3 lead. Atlanta could not trim that advantage, and Austin booked its ticket to the LOVB Championship.
“The golden set is historical for the league, no? We have a bad feeling because of the loss, but we have to go home with heads up and be very proud of what we did,” Coco said.
During the golden set, Montaño landed four more kills that aren’t counted in her record. Atlanta hit .294 as a team in that extra frame, better than their match attack efficiency but well below Austin’s .467.
