RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Southeastern held the early advantage in the match at 1-0 after a 25-23 set win in the first, but Arkansas Tech would rattle off three consecutive set wins for a 3-1 victory.
The Savage Storm notched 31 kills over the four sets, led by
Maci Morrison with seven on a .300 attack average. Noeila Rocha and
Jaedyn Newman combined for 12 kills, each recording six, while
Jasmin Dion dished out 27 assists and added 12 digs for a double-double.
In her third appearance for the blue and gold,
Nykeriah Allen paced the side with 5.0 total blocks, and
Merrick Hammel would chip in a team-high 21 digs.
Southeastern (7-15, 2-8 GAC) travels to Searcy tomorrow for a match against Harding at 4 p.m.
SET ONE
Southeastern and Arkansas Tech were even through the first ten points, tied at 5-5, before the blue and gold began to find separation. A kill from Armstrong would ignite a 6-1 run capped off by a Rocha kill to give SE an 11-6 edge. The Golden Suns were quick to reply, cutting the Southeastern lead to one, but a 4-0 run by the blue and gold stretched their advantage back to 20-15.
SE continued to add to its lead, stringing together another four-straight points to get to set-point, though a late charge from ATU soon put the Storm under pressure. Arkansas Tech battled back to cut it to one, 24-23, and a quick timeout by SE allowed the Storm to regroup and grab the final point on a block from Morrison and Dion to secure a 25-23 win.
SET TWO
The Golden Suns jumped on the Storm early in the set, racing out to a 13-4 lead. ATU kept the pace up over the next rallies, with its advantage growing to 19-9, and the hosts would remain in control for a 25-14 set win.
SET THREE
Arkansas Tech carried the momentum over from set two to take an 11-4 lead at the first break of set three. From there, the Storm attack continued to be held in check by ATU, which allowed the Golden Suns to grow their edge to 18-10, and the hosts would close out the frame on a 6-0 flurry to take the set 25-12.
SET FOUR
The Storm and Golden Suns traded points to start the fourth set, tied at 9-9, but a quick burst from ATU gave the hosts a 13-9 edge. SE stayed close through kills by Morrison and Rocha, keeping the blue and gold within striking distance down three,15-12. Another flurry of points for the Golden Suns forced an SE timeout, but the Golden Suns stayed hot with their advantage growing to 23-15. Arkansas Tech would claim two of the final three points of the match to win 25-17.
