MARSHALL, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor volleyball team dropped a four-set decision to East Texas Baptist University Saturday afternoon in Marshall. The loss dropped the Cru to 17-5 on the season and 7-1 in American Southwest Conference action.
The first set played closely until the Cru took a four-point lead at the 12-8 mark. UMHB held the high ground, extending the lead to six points and cruising to a 24-20 set point. The Tigers fought back, tying the set at 24. The remainder of the set went point-for-point until a kill by Kaysen Miller, a service ace from Natalie Hughes and a kill from Addison Yates sealed a 29-27 UMHB win in the first.
UMHB led early in the second set but the Tigers answered, tying the set at 15. The Cru regained the lead until the 19-19 mark when ETBU tied it. The set saw four more tied scores before East Texas Baptist closed it with a pair of kills, evening the match with a 25-23 second-set victory.
The Cru led early in the third set before the Tigers took the lead at 9-8 and cruised right through, winning the set 25-17. ETBU took the fourth-set lead on the first point and did not let up, sealing the match with a 25-19 win.
Ava Ribakovs led the Cru with 18 kills while Allie Thompson and Kaysen Miller each added nine. Miller hit .400 in the contest with just one error on 20 attempts. Chloe Brandt anchored the offense with 24 assists while Ribakovs added 13.
Defensively, Angie Garcia tallied 12 digs followed by Brandt with nine. Thompson was the leader at the net, putting down five blocks.
UMHB returns to action on Friday, October 30th in a 6 p.m. match at Howard Payne University in Brownwood.
