JOPLIN, Mo. – Southeastern splits its second day of matches at the Southern Invite. SE picked up a sweep in the first match of the day, defeating Northeastern State 3-0, before falling 3-2 to Southwest Baptist after rallying from two sets down to send it to a fifth frame.
"We have had a great start to the season and this tournament. I am proud of this young group and what we are doing early in the season. To start 2-0 is huge for us," head coach
Nicole Solum-Mitchell said. "The loss to SBU is definitely a learning opportunity for us. I am very proud of the fight to come back and take it to a 5th set. This team shows a lot of fight and grit," Solum-Mitchell said.
Gabby Jones led the attack over the two matches, recording 29 kills, and picked up a double-double with 16 kills and 17 digs against Southwest Baptist.
Rylee Jackson tallied 25 kills across the two contests, while
Jasmin Dion navigated the attack with 67 assists. Dion also added 24 digs to her totals and had a double-double against SBU with 37 assists and 15 digs.
Patience Lewis racked up 31 digs in the two matches, including a high of 21 versus SBU, while
Sophee Dean and
Nykeriah Allen led the defense at the net with 5.0 total blocks each.
MATCH ONE: SE 3, NSU 0
SET ONE
The attack ran through Jackson to start the first frame, as the sophomore transfer slammed down five kills to help give the Storm a 15-13 advantage. NSU would reel in the blue and gold after a pair of SE errors to tie the set 16-all, but Southeastern replied with a kill from Dean and an ace by Lewis to regain a 20-18 edge. Following a timeout by Northeastern, SE rattled off back-to-back kills from Jackson and Jones to set up a 25-22 win.
SET TWO
SE and NSU were locked at 3-3 to get the second stanza going before the Storm broke the deadlock on an 8-3 flurry to grab an 11-6 lead. Southeastern added to its lead not long after, building a 4-0 run, sparked by a Dion kill to stretch its advantage to 15-9. The blue and gold stayed on the front, growing the lead to 20-10 after rattling off five straight points, including three consecutive kills by Jones. Southeastern remained in control to take the second set 25-13.
SET THREE
The two sides traded scores to get the third set started, but the RiverHawks would soon take a 7-3 lead. However, NSU's lead would not last long, as the blue and gold chained together five straight points, including kills by Jones, Jackson and Allen, to go in front 10-8. Despite the flurry by the Storm, NSU remained on the heels of SE, battling back to tie the set 10-10 and later 17-all.
SE looked to build a gap at 20-18, but the RiverHawks continued to apply pressure with the set locked again at 20-all. The Storm eventually found a breakthrough with kills from Jackson and Jones to help the blue and gold outscore Northeastern 5-2 in the final rallies to secure a 25-22 set win.
MATCH TWO: SBU 3, SE 2
SET ONE
Southeastern trailed the Bearcats 5-3 to open set one, and SBU would carry its lead to 11-8. The Storm responded with a 3-0 run with kills from
Anger Ngeth and Jones to trim the Southwest Baptist lead to one, 14-13, and eventually tied the frame 16-all after a kill by Dion. However, the Bearcats went on a run to take back the advantage and would hold off a late Storm charge to win the set 25-22.
SET TWO
Similar to the first frame, the Bearcats were off to a fast start, as the blue and gold fell behind 8-2. SE cut into the SBU edge with a pair of kills by Jackson and an ace from Lewis, but the Bearcats picked up their pace again to push their lead to 18-9. Southwest Baptist would carry its advantage to set point to win 25-16.
SET THREE
The Bearcats continued to start strong, racing out to a 7-3 lead, but the Storm quickly found their footing and would cut the SBU edge to two, 14-12, after kills from Ngeth and Jones. SE remained on the heels of the Bearcats and soon exploded for a 7-1 run, featuring a pair of Jackson kills to grab its first lead of the set at 22-20. Jones capped off the late momentum with a kill to pull a frame back, 25-22.
SET FOUR
Southeastern used the late momentum from the third stanza to take an early 7-2 lead to get the fourth set started. The Storm added to their lead through a trio of kills by Dion to stretch the gap to 14-6, and carried it to 17-9. The Bearcats began to claw back into the set, cutting the SE lead to 21-19 and later 22-20, but the blue and gold responded to close out the set with three straight kills by Jones to take it 25-20.
SET FIVE
The Storm were under pressure early from a flurry of attacks by Southwest Baptist, who struck first to take a 7-3 lead. SE leaned on a pair of Jackson kills to cut into the Beacat lead, and a kill by Jones and a block by Allen and Dean pulled the blue and gold within three, 13-10. However, SBU would hold off the late Storm charge to win the final frame 15-11.
Southeastern (2-1, 0-0 GAC) concludes the Southern Invite tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. against Missouri S&T from the Leggett and Platt Athletic Center.
