BETHANY, Okla. — Southern Nazarene Volleyball could not find a spark in Tuesday night's matchup against rival Oklahoma Baptist, falling 3-1 for their second conference loss of 2023.
 
The Storm (10-5, 2-2 GAC) and the Bison (8-6, 2-1 GAC) were fairly even across the board, but the OBU attack set the pace of the game and SNU was unable to match the energy. OBU powered down 23 more kills than the Storm, featuring an overwhelming first set hitting percentage of .409 that created the tone for the match.
 
 
OBU went to work early in the first set, using three straight kills to force an SNU timeout as they built a slim 8-4 lead. OBU continued to find holes in the Storm defense, piling on more points to reach a 15-7 lead. The Storm fought to cut the deficit with key kills from Sunny Batschelett, but OBU delivered rounds of attacks that pushed the Storm further back to an eventual 25-13 set 1 loss.
 
 
Oklahoma Baptist's fire did not settle moving into set 2 as they struck SNU with a 7-2 lead early, forcing head coach Kevin Ingram to take another timeout. Whitney Bowie excited her team with a few kills to help SNU make a comeback, and a collective effort on the offensive end helped them rally back to within two points at 16-14. The teams traded points on the next few possessions, but back-to-back kills put the Bisons at match point with SNU behind three. A failed block attempt by SNU handed the final point to OBU, and the Bison improved to 2-0 in the match after stealing set 2, 25-22.
 
 
The Storm regrouped and stumped OBU in set 3, exploding for a 10-4 start. SNU's offense and defense quickly outshined the Bison, forcing error after error on the Bison while attacking every hole in their defense. Cruising with a nine-point lead, SNU felt the pressure as the Bison fought back with a few solid possessions to come back within five. The Storm took care of business late, warding off a Bison sweep with a bounce-back win of 25-18.
 
SNU carried over their momentum into set four, staying within just a few points of the Bison early. OBU's attack kickstarted once more and a service ace gave them a four-point advantage before SNU was prompted to take time. The Bison dished out five quick points after the break and skyrocketed to a 10-point lead. Four consecutive points by SNU was enough to cut the deficit down to seven, but OBU did not back down, answering every Storm attack with one of their own to eventually snatch set four, 25-16. OBU's final set win handed them the match victory, 3-1, while recording their 21st win over the Storm since the two teams have met.
 
Southern Nazarene did feature key performances in the match. Batschelett led the Storm attack with 15 kills and Kaley Brubaker led in assists with 23.
 
Breckynn Meyers recorded the team-high in digs with 10 and Whitney Bowie tallied five blocks.
 
Up Next:
 
SNU will be in search of a bounce-back win on Thursday, September 28th as they head to Weatherford to match up with Southwestern Oklahoma State at 6 p.m.