CONWAY, Ark. - No. 6 seed HBU claimed the first set, but was edged by No. 3 Northwestern State in each of the next three to fall in the first round of the Southland Conference Tournament, 3-1 (22-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-23) Friday afternoon in the Farris Center.
Junior outside hitter
Mikayla Vivens and sophomore outside hitter
Kelly Colwell each recorded double-doubles for the Huskies (17-15), Vivens with 16 kills and 13 digs and Colwell with 10 kills and 19 digs. Junior middle blocker
Megan Patillo had 11 kills and four blocks, while junior right side
Ashtyn Richey and sophomore middle blocker
Ebonie Ballesteros each chipped in with five kills. Junior setter
Morgan Dewyer dished out 40 assists to go along with 15 digs and four kills. Senior libero
Hannah Lewis came up with 19 digs and senior defensive specialist
Camie Copeland had 10.
Hannah Brister registered 24 kills and 21 digs for the Lady Demons (20-11), while Alexis Warren had 11 kills and 14 digs. Kourtney Seaton added 10 kills and Darria Williams had nine. Skylar Besch handed out 29 assists and Cayman Sutton had 25. Megan Lohmiller had 29 digs and Haley Hoang had 11.
NSU hit .198 for the match and HBU hit .193. The Lady Demons outdug the Huskies, 83-81, and outaced them, 8-5. HBU held a 9-4 advantage in blocks.
The Huskies fell behind, 18-13, in the first set, but ripped off six-straight points to take a 19-18 lead. The rally started with a kill by Colwell, then NSU committed five-straight attacking error, one on a block by Patillo and Vivens. The Lady Demons scored the next two to regain the lead, but the Huskies answered with the next three to take a two-point lead. NSU once again tied the frame at 22-22, but a kill by Vivens, a block by Ballesteros and Richey and an ace by Dewyer finished off the set for a 25-22 win.
HBU held a 22-21 lead in the second, but NSU scored twice to lead by one. With the set tied, 23-23, the Lady Demons got a kill by Warren and a block by Seaton and Warren for a 25-23 decision.
The Huskies held a 21-18 lead in the third, but the Lady Demons scored four of the next five to tie the set, 22-22. HBU sided out on a kill by Vivens, but NSU scored the final three points of the set to score a 25-23 victory.
HBU once again led, 22-21, but NSU scored twice to lead 23-22. A kill by Patillo tied the frame at 23-23, but back-to-back kills by Brister clinched the match for the Lady Demons.
NSU will advance to face No. 2 Sam Houston State in the semifinals Saturday at noon.
