HOUSTON – After suffering its first setback in conference play, first-place HCU held off McNeese for a straight-set victory, 3-0 (26-24, 25-19, 25-23), in Southland Conference volleyball Saturday afternoon in Sharp Gym. Houston Christian University (HCU), formerly Houston Baptist University (HBU), underwent a name change in September 2022.
 
Redshirt freshman setter Grace McLaughlin recorded a double-double with 38 assists, 13 digs, three kills and an ace, while senior right side Anna Gadway also posted a double-double, hitting .393 with 15 kills and 12 digs for the Huskies (14-6, 6-1 SLC). Sophomore outside hitter Sara Arroyo added 13 kills, redshirt freshman outside hitter Shelby O'Neal had nine kills, sophomore middle blocker Audrey Pearce had seven kills and senior middle blocker Jada Allen had four blocks.
 
Nejra Hanic led McNeese (8-13, 4-3), hitting .387 with 14 kills, while Mikayla Christiansen had 11 kills and eight digs. Mia Perales had 20 assists, Dejah Dade had 12, and Bailey Tillman led the Cowgirls defensively with 17 digs.
 
HCU hit .309 for the match, while McNeese hit .235. The Huskies edged the Cowgirls in digs, 48-46, while each team had five blocks and five aces.
 
McNeese never led by more than one and HCU had its biggest lead of the first set after three-straight points to make the score 15-12. The frame was tied, 21-21, until Gadway and junior libero Kaley Feris had back-to-back kills to force a McNeese timeout. The Huskies had set point at 24-22, but the Cowgirls kept the set alive on kills by Christiansen and Sanni Rantanen. HCU escaped with the decision on kills by O'Neal and Arroyo.
 
Holding a slim 15-14 advantage in the second, the Huskies scored four-straight to take a five-point lead. Gadway had six kills, Arroyo had five and O'Neal four in the set as HCU claimed a 25-19 win.
 
The Cowgirls led by four early in the third, but the Huskies stormed back with a six-point run to go up 12-10. HCU extended its lead to five at 19-14, but McNeese scored five-straight on a kill by Hanic and four-straight aces by Rantanen. The set was tied at 21-21 and 23-23, but Arroyo put down a kill and freshman defensive specialist Hazel Allen finished off the match with an ace.
 
The Huskies are back in action when they face Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on the road Thursday, before returning home to take on New Orleans Saturday in Sharp Gym.