Seniors Shine on Senior Night in Five-Set Thriller

DURANT, Okla. – In the final match of the season, Southeastern battled back and forth on Thursday evening with Southern Nazarene. SE took a 2-0 lead into the break, and the Crimson Storm would rally to send it to the fifth, where the blue and gold would come out on top for a 3-2 win.
 
In her final match wearing the blue and gold, Maci Morrison led the Savage Storm attack with 16 kills on a .471 attack average, setting a new career-high in kills, and was one of four players with double-digit kills. Alexis Williams slammed down a career-high 15 kills, while Alaina Armstrong also saw 15 and would add a career-high 23 digs. Senior Noelia Rocha joined the duo with 14 kills.
 
Setting the tone for attack, Jasmin Dion dished out a season-high 49 assists and added 22 digs for a double-double. Faith Kruebbe joined in on the career night, recording 21 digs, while Merrick Hammel led the team with 24 as one of four players with 20 digs.
 
SET ONE
Morrison had the hot hand early for the Storm, using three kills to help SE to a 9-6 lead. From there, a kill by Rocha sparked a 4-0 run to stretch the edge to five, and another kill by Morrison pushed the gap to 17-12. Southeastern held a two-point margin over the next and would use a 3-0 burst to build separation from the Crimson Storm and set up set point, 24-19.
 
However, the blue and gold were under pressure from the visitors who rattled off four straight points to cut the gap to one, 24-23. SE regrouped and turned to Rocha for the final kill of the set to win the opening frame 25-24.
 
SET TWO
The Crimson Storm held a one-point edge to start the second set, but a 4-0 run by the blue and gold erased the gap to give them a 7-4 lead. Southeastern continued to lead over the next exchanges, and Morrison and Armstrong soon began to heat up, combining for four kills to grow the Savage Storm advantage to 17-13.
 
The two sides went point for point from there, but a 3-0 flurry for SE, featuring back-to-back kills by Rocha, extended the lead to 23-19. A kill from Kruebbe gave Southeastern set point and a service error off the hands of SNU gave the Savage Storm a 25-23 set victory.
 
SET THREE
SE and SNU went point for point to begin the third set, tied at 6-all, and the visitors would be the first to find a breakthrough, taking an 11-7 edge. The lead would not last long, as Southeastern built a 5-1 run to regain the lead, but a quick answer from the Crimson Storm flipped the advantage back in their favor, 19-13. SNU held its edge for the rest of the frame to win 25-18.
 
SET FOUR
Little separated the two sides in the fourth, as Southeastern held a 7-6 lead. Both teams rattled off bursts of scores, trading 3-0 runs, tied at 16-all. SE looked to grab the momentum with a 4-1 burst to jump ahead 20-17 and later 24-20. However, a later run of scores for the Crimson Storm saw them even the match 2-2 with a 26-24 set win.
 
SET FIVE
Southern Nazarene opened the final frame with a 3-0 run, but Armstrong began to take control, slamming down three kills and a block to tie the set 6-6. Rocha had the hot hand next for the blue and gold, sparking a 4-0 run with three kills to put SE within striking distance, 11-8. A big block by Kruebbe set up back-to-back kills for Morrison and Armstrong to secure the final set 15-10.