SE Downed by East Central in Five Sets

ADA, Okla. – Southeastern Oklahoma State comes up short on the road in Ada to rivals East Central 3-2 inside the Kerr Activities Center.
 
Ruthie Forson recorded a triple-double with a team-high 15 kills and 35 assists and added 17 digs to her totals. D'Nari Mills and Noelia Rocha reached double-digit kills with 13 and 11, respectively, while Mills registered 18 digs for a double-double. Patience Lewis tallied 35 of the team's 120 digs.
 
SET ONE
A back-and-forth start had the set tied at 5-5 and later 9-all. The Storm began to find separation, starting with a 4-0 burst to jump ahead 13-9. ECU replied with a flurry of points to cut the gap to two, but kills by Forson, Mills and Rocha kept the blue-and-gold out in front, 18-13. After an East Central timeout, Southeastern allowed just three more points in the set, winning the first frame 25-16.
 
SET TWO
The Tigers rushed out of the gate, leading 7-1 at the first break on a 6-0 burst. SE trimmed East Central's lead down to five on a 3-0 burst featuring back-to-back blocks followed by a kill by Forson. The Tigers soon took advantage of a handful of errors by the Storm to go ahead 15-6.
 
Southeastern stayed close through a flurry of points, including two kills by Rocha to keep within five. Despite the late pressure by the Storm, East Central closed out the set on a 4-0 run to win 25-16.
 
SET THREE
Southeastern and East Central traded 4-0 runs to start the frame, tied at 4-4, before the Storm took a 10-3 lead behind kills from Alexis Williams, Forson and Mills. The two sides traded leads again after a 5-0 burst by ECU before SE rattled off three straight points to go ahead 14-13. The Tigers continued to score in bunches, building a 6-1 run to regain the advantage, and would end the set on a 4-1 run to claim the frame 25-21.
 
SET FOUR
A fast start by the Storm had the blue-and-gold up early 6-3. ECU kept close on a 3-0 run and tied the set 10-all after back-to-back kills. SE picked up the pace again with a 6-1 run, featuring a pair of kills by Rocha, 16-11. The Tigers stayed on the heels with another burst of points to trim the Storm's edge to three. ECU eventually closed the gap down to two, 23-21, but kills from Michera Moffett and Mills closed the door on the late rally to win the frame 25-21.
 
SET FIVE
The Storm and Tigers were back and forth in the final stanza, with four ties in the first 14 points. East Central held a slight edge at the halfway point, 8-6, after a 3-1 burst, and added to its advantage with a flurry of points, 11-6. ECU remained in control through the final rallies to take the final frame 15-8.

Southeastern (12-14, 7-7) stays on the road for its next outing in Bethany, Okla. to take on Southern Nazarene on Tuesday, Nov. 12, at 6 p.m.