BELTON, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor volleyball team earned a 3-1 win over Howard Payne University Friday evening in Belton. The win improved the Cru to 16-5 on the season while the Yellow Jackets leveled at 10-10.
 
The first set played point-for-point until the Cru used a 5-1 run to take a lead at 14-10. UMHB held the high ground, extending that lead to seven at the 19-12 mark. Howard Payne pulled within five but UMHB closed it out with kills from Baylee Mobley and Abby Caron for the 25-19 win. Raylee Schaffner and Natalie Hughes led the Cru with four kills each in the set.
 
Howard Payne jumped to an early lead in the second set but UMHB fought back, tying the set at 7-7. UMHB pulled away with a five-point run and maintained a substantial lead, cruising to a 25-19 win in the second.
 
The third set opened with point-for-point play but UMHB used some short scoring runs to extend the lead gradually, taking a five-point margin at 19-14. Howard Payne fought back, pulling within one at 20-19 and tying the set at 20. A kill by Dravyn Hurd put the Cru back up by one. The Cru went back up by two at 23-21 with Natalie Hughes forcing match point with a kill. The Yellow Jackets answered with back-to-back points and tied the set at 24 off a service ace. Hughes hit another kill to force match point again but HPU mirrored for a 25-25 tied score. Howard Payne went up by one on the next play but Schaffner answered for another knotted score. The Yellow Jackets closed it with a service ace and a kill to force a fourth set at 29-27.
 
Howard Payne led for the majority of the fourth set, but UMHB stuck with it, never trailing by more than three points. The Yellow Jackets led at 23-21 but a kill from Kaysen Miller pulled the Cru within one. Howard Payne hit another kill for set point but a big block from Kendall Harrington kept the Cru in it. UMHB tied the set at 24. A block from Cameron Pesek gave the Cru match point at 25-24. The Cru sealed it off a hard-fought rally and attack error by the Yellow Jackets, sealing the 3-1 win.
 
Natalie Hughes led the Cru with 17 kills, hitting just three errors on 27 total attacks. Dravyn Hurd and Schaffner each added eight kills while Pesek and Mobley tallied seven. Harrington anchored the Cru with 49 total assists. Defensively, Angie Garcia totaled 18 digs followed by Mobley with 17, Harrington with 12 and Peyton Sedlacek with 10. UMHB totaled 10 blocks in the contest, led by Hughes with three.
 
UMHB returns to action on Tuesday, October 28^th in a 7 p.m. contest at Austin College in Sherman.