HAMMOND, La. – HBU rolled through the first set, but Southeastern Louisiana rebounded to take the next three sets and sole possession of third place with a 3-1 (16-25, 25-21-25-21, 25-16) victory in Southland Conference volleyball Thursday night in University Center.
 
Junior middle blocker Jada Allen hit .611 with 12 kills and two blocks for the Huskies (6-3 SLC), while senior outside hitter Mikayla Vivens recorded a double-double with 10 kills and 12 digs. Redshirt freshman outside hitter Reagan Leinen had nine kills, junior middle blocker Ebonie Ballesteros had six kills and six blocks and sophomore right side Anna Gadway had seven kills, eight digs and four blocks. Sophomore setter Ellie Wipf posted 39 assists and 13 digs, while redshirt freshman libero Kaley Feris had 19 digs and freshman defensive specialist Madeline McKinney had eight.
 
Karlee Wilkerson and Kailin Newsome each had 15 kills for SLU (7-2 SLC), with Newsome adding 11 digs. Ryan Maddera had seven kills and five blocks and Crispin Adams had six kills and five blocks. Ariana Hebert registered 22 assists, while Calli Collins had 21. Ansley Tullis led the Lady Lions defensively with 31 digs.
 
SLU hit .153 for the match and HBU hit .144. The Lady Lions outdug the Huskies, 69-64, and had nine aces to HBU's two. The Huskies held a slight edge in blocks, 8-7.
 
HBU used an eight-point run to jump out to a 16-5 lead in the first set. SLU was able to climb back to within five at 16-11 and still trailed by five at 20-15 until the Huskies scored five of the last six points of the set. HBU hit .229 in the frame, while holding SLU to -.051.
 
The Lady Lions responded in the second by hitting .244 with 17 kills to pull away late and even the match. SLU had to hold off HBU in the third, as the Lady Lions took a six-point advantage at 16-10, only to see the Huskies get back within two at 19-17. SLU still held a two-point lead at 22-20, but got back-to-back points to take control and finished out the set, 25-21.
 
With the score tied 12-12 in the fourth, the Lady Lions scored four-straight points. SLU then scored the last five points of the match to close out the 25-16 win.
 
The Huskies return to action when they face Lamar Saturday at 11 a.m. in Beaumont, Texas, with another chance to clinch a berth in the Southland Conference Tournament.