BOLIVAR, Mo.—Southern Nazarene played their second game in Missouri on back to back days this Saturday afternoon. After a four-set win on Friday, Southern Nazarene wound up on the wrong side of a five-set match with Southwest Baptist. The Crimson Storm forced a fifth set after dominating the fourth set, but were unable to keep the momentum going as the Bearcats took the match in five games (23-25, 25-23, 25-20, 14-25, 15-9).
Statistically, Southern Nazarene (5-6) dominated the first set, racking up 17 kills on a .412 hitting percentage. Southwest Baptist (5-5) hit just .146, yet they kept the game close. Deadlocked at 18, the teams then traded 11 straight points, leading to a slight 24-23 advantage for SNU. At set point, the back-and-forth pattern was finally broken when an SBU attack error gave the Crimson Storm a 25-23 win.
After a strong showing on offense in set one, Southern Nazarene struggled to maintain that rhythm in sets two and three. They held a 17-16 lead in set two, but could not maintain that lead as Southwest Baptist tied the match with a 25-23 win in set two.
The Bearcats controlled the third set and took a 2-1 advantage in the match. They won seven of the first eight points in the set and never looked back. SNU got within two points on a couple of occasions, but were unable to come all the way back as Southwest Baptist took the game 25-20.
Facing adversity in the fourth set, Southern Nazarene responded. The Storm held a slight 15-14 lead, but then rattled off an incredible 10-0 run to take the set and send the match to a decisive game five. During that 10-0 run, SNU was helped by six Bearcat attack errors.
SNU held a 5-3 lead in the fifth set, but surrendered a 6-0 run that left the Crimson Storm down 9-5. The Storm could only get back within two points and eventually fell 15-9, giving Southwest Baptist the match win.
Whitney Bowie was the leader on the offensive end, collecting a season-high 15 kills. It was her second consecutive double-digit kill outing.
Tessa Henry also notched double-digit kills for her second straight game, finishing with 11.
Tynaa Mojia was the other Storm member to reach double-digit kills, totaling 10 in the match. It was the first time in her career to reach that mark.
Kaley Brubaker was two assists shy of a career-high with 48.
Tatum Smith, Kaley Brubaker, and Breckynn Myers hit double-digit marks on the defensive end, recording 17, 15, and 13 digs, respectively.
The Storm will return to Great American Conference play next time out as they travel to Alva, Oklahoma to take on Northwestern Oklahoma State. SNU and Northwestern split last season's matchups with the road team sweeping both contests. First serve is set for Sep. 13 at 7:00 p.m.
