TEXARKANA, Texas – The Louisiana Christian University volleyball team held the advantage at the net in its match against Texas A&M-Texarkana, blocking eight attacks to just six, but it wasn't enough in a 3-0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-14) loss to the Eagles Friday evening at the Patterson Student Center.
Louisiana Christian (5-17, 4-9 RRAC) rallied from a 20-10 deficit to Texas A&M-Texarkana (15-8, 14-1 RRAC) in the opening set with four consecutive points.
Alanah Dugar supplied three kills during the run and teamed with
Vivien Brouillette for a block, forcing an Eagle timeout at 20-14. The Wildcats continued to close the gap, pulling within 22-17 before surrendering the final three points. LCU finished the set with 12 kills, its highest total of the match.
The Wildcats built a 9-6 advantage in the second set after a
Kourtlyn Smith kill and an opponent attack error. LCU later regained a 12-11 lead but eventually faced a 22-18 deficit. A three-point response ended with
Emma Cother and
Mallory Wills combining for a block to make it 22-21 and prompt another timeout. Dugar then converted a Cother assist to bring LCU within 23-22, but the Wildcats dropped the next two points. LCU hit .194 with nine kills and three attack errors in its closest set.
LCU led 4-3 in the third set before a six-point TAMUT run put the Wildcats behind 9-4. Consecutive Dugar kills, assisted by Cother and
Yadneli Molina, narrowed the deficit to 11-7. The Wildcats could not sustain that response, committing eight attack errors against nine kills for a .023 hitting percentage in the final set.
Dugar led the Wildcats with 12 kills, while Smith added eight and hit .300 on 20 attacks.
Holly Rowe contributed six kills and three block assists. Cother directed the offense with 23 assists and added 10 digs, two kills and a block assist.
At the net, Brouillette recorded one solo block and four block assists to help LCU earn an 8-6 advantage in total blocks. Wills added three block assists and two kills. Molina anchored the backcourt with 15 digs, with
Kylie Elmore contributing six and
Shanoa Mitch adding four.
LCU finished with 30 kills and a .113 hitting percentage, trailing TAMUT's 44 kills and .226 mark. LCU also faced a 58-41 deficit in digs and a 7-0 disadvantage in service aces while committing six service errors.
The Wildcats look to take the final match-up of the season with the Eagles on Saturday as the two teams meet up again on Saturday with opening serve set for 10 a.m. at the Patterson Student Center.
