Lauren Lee recorded match highs of 13 kills and five aces as Mount Olive defeated Lees-McRae 25-20, 25-16, 25-12 in Conference Carolinas women's volleyball Friday at Kornegay Arena. Nicole Karas had her second straight four-ace performance as the Trojans won their third in a row and moved into a third-place tie in the conference standings.

Mount Olive (10-12 overall, 7-5 Conference Carolinas) built a 17-11 lead in the first set as Lee had three of her kills during a 6-2 run. Lees-McRae (2-22, 0-11) came back with four unanswered points, sparked by a pair of kills by Haydn Beatty.

The Bobcats got as close as 21-20, but the Trojans closed the set with a 4-0 run. Dezirae Mackey had her second ace of the set and Lee combined with Carly White on a block on set point.

Karas' six-point service run staked Mount Olive to a 7-1 lead in the second set and the Trojans were never threatened. Karas recorded three aces during the run and set up a kill by Lee on an overpass. The lead grew to 22-11 after a kill by Nicole Powell, who also had a kill on set point to give the Trojans a two-set lead.

Mount Olive jumped out to another quick start in the third set as three aces by Lee helped give the Trojans a 9-1 lead. The Trojans led 13-2 after kills by Montgomery Register and Danielle Plante, and the margin never fell below nine points.

Lee had only three errors in 23 attempts for a .435 hitting percentage as Mount Olive hit .333 as a team. Mackey had six kills and no errors in seven attempts (.857), while White added six kills and three blocks. Nine different Trojans had at least one kill. Karas finished with 31 assists and Nicole Sparks had a match-high 12 digs to go with two aces.

Beatty led Lees-McRae with nine kills, while Avalon Liscio added seven kills and two aces. Lauren Fox also had two aces for the Bobcats.

Mount Olive is back in action Saturday as the Trojans play host to King in a Conference Carolinas match-up. Match time is 2 p.m. at Kornegay Arena. Prior to the contest, Trojan seniors Charnel Austin, Lauren Lee, Nicole Powell, Nicole Sparks and Carly White will be recognized during Senior Day ceremonies.