Alyssa Oberle’s and Brittany Williams’ 15 kills apiece weren’t enough for Texas A&M University-Commerce as the Lions fell 25-21, 19-25, 25-19, 25-18 to Southwest Baptist in the SBU Tournament on Saturday morning in Bolivar, Mo.??
Perla Faudoa recorded 32 assists and 15 digs and Lauren Flynn added 26 digs to help keep the Lions close throughout the match.
The Bearcats (4-3) held off a late push from A&M-Commerce in the first set, but an 8-3 spurt midway through the second and kills by Oberle and Ballard won the set and tied the match after two.??Southwest Baptist trailed early in the final two games, but put together runs in each to overtake the Lions and snap a two-game skid.??
Kelsey Stewart totaled a game-high 21 kills and Rachel Sawyer added 10 kills and six of the teams 15 blocks to pace the Bearcats.?
The Lions followed with a 25-17, 25-20, 25-10, loss to the Rockhurst Hawks in their final match of the SBU Tournament on Saturday afternoon.
Oberle totaled 11 kills and nine digs to pace the Lions. Amy Addison recorded nine kills and Flynn tallied 20 digs to push her SBU Tournament total (four games) to 104.
Flynn currently leads the Lone Star Conference with 5.19 digs per game.
Rockhurst (5-3), which snapped a two-game losing streak, went on runs of 6-0 and 7-1 thoughout the first set to take the early advantage. A&M-Commerce (3-4) kept it close in the second set and trailed 22-19 late, but two kills from Maggie McGovern and a Lion error halted any threat.
Addison slammed four kills and helped the Lions leap out to a 9-5 lead in the third, but two 5-0 spurts and a 5-1 rally sealed the set and the match for Rockhurst.
Katy Hernandez finished with 15 kills and nine digs and McGovern added 11 kills to lead the Hawks’ charge. Emily Levy chipped in nine kills and four blocks.
A&M-Commerce returns to action on Friday in Searcy, Ark. with games against Harding at 1:30 p.m. and Ouachita Baptist at 6:30 p.m. in the Harding tournament. They hope to gain another win in the young season.