OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU volleyball team struggled to slow down a red-hot hitting No. 24 Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) on Saturday afternoon inside the Gaulke Activity Center as the Evangels fell in straight sets.
 
SCORE

• SW Assemblies of God 3, Mid-America Christian 0 (25-23, 25-17, 25-14)
  • Mid-America Christian (13-10, 9-5 SAC)
  • SW Assemblies of God (16-6, 13-1 SAC)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Miriam Nardi – 11 Kills, .381 ATK%, 3 Blocks
• Ludmilla Souza – 19 Assists, 7 Digs
• Marlee Hunter – 16 Digs

MATCH SUMMARY

• Set One
  • Mid-America Christian started the opening set strong, scoring the first four points, but after Southwestern Assemblies rallied back with four-straight of its own, the Evangels strung together a 6-1 run to take a 10-5 lead on an assisted block by Annabeth Fehrle and Sawyer Franz.
  • After the midway point of the set, SAGU clawed its way back behind a 5-1 surge of its own as back-to-back kills by Lilly Hanna and Emma Tompkins made it a one-point game, but the Evangels countered with three unanswered featuring kills from Franz and Lena Stockhammer to set the score to 18-14.
  • The Evangels maintained a three-point advantage late in the set when Fehrle terminated a kill toward the back line to make it a 22-19 game, the Lady Lions captured the late momentum, scoring on six of the final seven rallies as a MACU attack error sealed a 25-23 win for SAGU.
• Set Two
  • After a pair of Miriam Nardi kills allowed the Evangels to take two of the first three points, Southwestern Assemblies seized control with six-straight as part of a 9-2 run to make it a 10-4 score near the midway point.
  • Early on in the second half of the set, MACU rattled off scores on seven of nine rallies, closing it to a 16-14 game following a Tompkins attack error.
  • However, the Evangels were unable to slow down SAGU over the final third as the Lady Lions closed out the second set with a 9-3 run that was capped off on a Cassidy Hargesheimer ace to wrap-up the 25-17 final.
• Set Three
  • Mid-America Christian put up a very tough fight against SAGU through the first 13 rallies of the third set as a 4-1 MACU surge gave the Evangels a 7-6 edge following a Cassidy McKinney service ace that dropped into the open middle of the Lady Lions defense.
  • A dominant 10-2 Southwestern Assemblies surge put to bed any comeback chances for the Evangels as Bailee Alexander's kill doubled-up the SAGU advantage at 18-9.
  • The Evangels picked up back-to-back terminations from the right side from Kaylee Harrison and Nardi, but the Lady Lions didn't allow MACU to gain any more momentum, finishing the set by scoring on seven of the final 10 rallies to seal the 25-14 victory.

MATCH NOTES

• Even though Mid-America Christian was able to limit Southwestern Assemblies of God to a .143 attack percentage in the opening set, the Evangels were unable to slow down the Lady Lions over the final two as a .379 and .303 second and third sets allowed SAGU to finish with 40 kills on a .260 hitting clip while MACU turned in 35 kills at a .173 rate.
• The Evangels faced a stiff challenge with SAGU's blocking efforts as the Lady Lions finished the match with nine team blocks to only four for MACU. The service line once again also played a big part in the match result as the Evangels could only muster two aces against a very strong Lady Lions serve receive with four errors while SAGU notched 10 aces to three miscues.
• Miriam Nardi led the MACU attack, tallying 11 kills on a .381 attack percentage to go with a team-high three blocks, but the Evangels struggled to get the attack going from the outside or the middle.
• Ludmilla Souza led the MACU passing efforts with 17 assists and seven digs while Marlee Hunter led the back row defensive efforts with 16 scoops.
• With the defeat, Mid-America Christian has now lost five straight to Southwestern Assemblies while the loss also moved MACU into a tie for fourth in the Sooner Athletic Conference standings with Oklahoma City at 9-5.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will look to bounce back in a pair of road matches next week as the Evangels will first head to Langston, Oklahoma on Tuesday, Oct. 17 for a 7 p.m. first serve against the Langston Lady Lions inside C.F. Gayles Arena.