Elkin's volleyball team put an end to a losing streak that dated back to October 2006 on Thursday night, rallying to top Bishop McGuinness in five games.

After the JV Elks dispatched of the visiting Villains 25-10, 25-21, the varsity Elks scored a 25-18, 20-25, 27-29, 25-17 and 15-9 decision.

That gave the program its first victory since a 3-0 triumph over Cherryville in the 2006 playoffs. It was the first conference victory for the Elks since a 3-2 win over North Stokes on Oct. 3, 2006.

"We've had a couple of moral victories but this one just felt sweet," said coach Jane Hendrick, a former Elkin player and coach who returned to lead the program this fall. "I saw some mental toughness. I'm happy for the girls. They finally see where the hard work has paid off."

The Elks had a chance to take a 2-1 lead on the Villains Thursday, holding a 24-15 advantage in game three. But a Bishop player served the Villains all the way back into contention, and the visitors eventually stole the set.

"I called two timeouts and we just couldn't shake that one,' Hendrick said.

But rather than deflate her squad, letting game three get away only served to energize them. The Elks dominated much of game four to push things to a fifth set.

The same Bishop player who had burned them in game three stepped to the service line in game five with Elkin holding a 14-9 lead. But this time, she served one into the net to end the match.

Hendrick called the win a total team effort for her group.

Bailey Carter and Kassi Womeldorf led the way at setter. "They both played excellent," Hendrick said. "They had good passes to them and they set to the right people."

Alli Newman, one of the hardest hitters on the team, "dominated the net," the coach said. Kali Brooks considers soccer her main sport but played what Hendrick called the match of her life. "She just attacked and attacked and attacked."

Shelby Walsh and Jordan Eldridge kept a lot of balls off the floor with hard work on the back row. Taylor Stike, Devin Carter, Caroline Rice, Amy Norman, Mary Gwyn Harris, Jennipher Burchette and Sydney Carter -- the rest of the varsity roster -- performed various unsung jobs to make the victory possible.

"Maybe we needed a tall blocker or maybe they subbed in on the back row to give someone a breather," Hendrick said. "If they hadn't have done what was asked of them, we would have been beaten."

Elkin (1-4 overall, 1-4 Northwest 1A) will now try to build a winning streak coming out of Labor Day weekend. The Elks travel to West Wilkes on Sept. 3 and host East Wilkes on Sept. 4.

Elkin and East Wilkes coaches are both asking their fans to bring canned food to their game on the 4th to help benefit Tri-C Ministries.

"We want to stock the shelves for them," Hendrick said.