KUTZTOWN, Pa. -- Kutztown head coach John Gump has been pleased with the progress his team has made over the last few weeks, but the Golden Bears just weren't getting the results. On Friday night at Keystone Arena, after honoring their outgoing coach, they finally did.

Kutztown hit better than .200 in the second and third sets and overcame a first-set loss to snap a seven-match slide with a 3-1 PSAC East victory over Millersville (23-25, 25-18, 25-21, 25-18).

Gump, who announced last month that the 2021 season would be his final one with the Golden Bears, was recognized by the team and athletic department prior to the match for his 25 years of dedication and leadership with the program. Friday night's win was his program-leading 401st.

The first set followed the script of many before it in recent weeks, coming down to the wire with the Bears (8-16, 3-8 PSAC East) just not able to get over the hump. KU led by as many as six, 13-7, following a kill from Sophia Basler (Dover, Del./Smyrna) and a Sydney Wilson (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) ace, but the Marauders scored 10 of the next 11 to gain the upper hand.

Twice in the late stages of the set, the Bears closed within a point, first at 23-22 on a Millersville (10-18, 4-7 PSAC East) ball handling error and again at 24-23 on a kill from Lexi Morrow (Landisburg, Pa./West Perry). But, the Marauders, facing their second set point, used a kill from Kylie Airesman to scratch out a two-point victory.

In the second, Kutztown was the better team down the stretch, breaking a 16-all tie with a 9-2 run to claim the set 25-18. Sadie Doss (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Mechanicsburg) had two of her three kills on the night during the spurt, while Julia Post (Sellersville, Pa./Pennridge) had a kill and a block and Erin Patterson (Garnet Valley, Pa./Garnet Valley) a kill.

KU steadily pulled away in the third, hitting .206 with 12 kills on 34 attempts to hold on for a 25-21 win. Post totaled four kills in the set and Basler three, while Morrow assisted on 11-of-12 kills.

Kills from Basler, Lilly Charlton (Landenberg, Pa./Avon Grove) and Patterson combined with an ace by Basler and a few Marauder errors pushed the Maroon and Gold to a 7-1 lead as they looked to put the match away in four. Millersville came all the way back to tie it at nine, but another big run --this time 8-2-- by the Bears was too much for Millersville to withstand.

Basler pumped out four of her 10 kills and Charlton had four of her seven. The offense continued to run through Morrow, who had 12 of her team's 13 helpers in the set and finished with her third 40-assist match of the season. Wilson was outstanding defensively with 34 digs, closing to within 137 of the school record of 2,265 held by Nicole Biuso.

Morrow (40 assists, 11 digs) and Basler (10 kills, 15 digs) each had double-doubles for the Maroon and Gold. Patterson had a match-high 14 kills and Gianna Agosti (Nesquehoning, Pa./Marian Catholic) had 12 digs.

Kutztown will close out its regular season home schedule Saturday with Senior Day against West Chester. First serve is scheduled for 1 p.m.