OKLAHOMA CITY – The Mid-America Christian volleyball team struggled to find a rhythm against the second-best team in the Sooner Athletic Conference as the Evangels fell in straight sets, 25-18, 25-14, 25-18 on Friday night at the Gaulke Activity Center.
Mid-America Christian (14-10, 12-7 SAC) could not slow down the Texas Wesleyan (21-7, 16-3 SAC) attack as the Lady Rams hit for a .364 attack percentage while the Evangels could only muster .125 against TWU.
Despite struggling as a team, junior outside hitter Hannah Focker performed well on the outside with 14 kills on a .294 attack percentage while freshman Maddie Callicoat put down 10 kills on a .333 percentage. Senior setter Alexa Bass finished the match with 27 assists and a team-high nine digs.
MACU was able to get off to a strong start in the opening set, tallying four of the first five points to grab an early 4-1 lead. However, the Lady Rams didn't stay down for long as an 8-1 surge pushed TWU in-front, 9-5.
Texas Wesleyan slowly built its lead to as much as seven at 20-13, but the scrappy Evangels clawed their way back by taking five of the next seven rallies featuring a pair of Callicoat kills to close the gap to 22-18. However, the Lady Rams closed out the set with three unanswered to gain the early advantage in the match.
The Evangels could not get into a rhythm in the second set as Texas Wesleyan gained the lead early and pulled away quickly, taking as large as a 22-8 advantage. MACU found some fight late in the set with a 6-1 run, featuring a Focker kill and service ace to go with a kill from Bass and Elena Hadzhieva, but once again the Lady Rams ended the set by taking the next two rallies.
MACU found itself down big once again in the final set when Texas Wesleyan claimed the point in 13 of the first 16 rallies, but the Evangels were once again able to chip away at the Lady Rams edge with a 7-2 run with Bass, Callicoat and Focker combining for six kills, cutting the deficit in half to 17-12. However, the Evangels couldn't climb any closer than four as Texas Wesleyan pulled away with the 25-18 set three victory and the match.
Mid-America Christian will now focus on Southwestern Assemblies of God for its regular season finale on Saturday. The Evangels will open the Senior Day slate with a Senior Day presentation to honor its three graduating seniors, Bass, Hadzhieva and Dianne Walter at noon before taking the court for a 1 p.m. opening serve.
