Hammond, Ind. – The Kentucky Wesleyan volleyball team suffered defeat in game one of the Midwest Region Crossover against Southwest Baptist Friday morning.
The Panthers (1-14, 0-7 G-MAC) were downed 25-23, 18-25, 22-25, 20-25 by the Bearcats (6-12, 1-4 GLVC).
Wesleyan led by as much as four in the first set after a Sydney Kennedy service ace made the score 17-13. SBU fought back to tie the set at 23, but back-to-back blocks by Gracie Newton, assisted by Havanah John on the first and Juliana Greaney on the second, gave the Panthers the 25-23 victory and a 1-0 match lead.
The Bearcats jumped out to an 8-2 advantage in the second set and never looked back, prevailing 25-18 to tie the match at 1-1.
In the third set, KWC trailed 12-9 before four consecutive points, highlighted by two service aces from Ana De Sevilla-Acosta, put Wesleyan up 13-12. Later, with the tally tied at 16, Southwest Baptist reeled off three straight points to gain control in a set they'd ultimately win 25-22.
The fourth set looked to be a commanding effort for the Bearcats, leading 17-10 at one point, but the Panthers were able to claw back into the set on the back of multiple kills by Emmy Goering. Trailing by just two at 20-18, SBU then earned five of the next seven points to put the match away.
Goering and Hadley Wolfe each had ten kills in the battle, and John wasn't far behind with eight. Sevilla-Acosta impressed with 23 assists and three aces to lead the team in both categories.
Newton strongly controlled the net with five blocks, and Greaney aided that endeavor with four. Maddie Hanshew recorded a team-high 14 digs.
The Panthers play two more matches tomorrow at the Crossover, beginning with Upper Iowa at 9:00 AM followed by Illinois Springfield at 2:00 PM. Click here to view the tournament page.
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