Southwestern University

GEORGETOWN, TEXAS – Playing in its final regular season match of the season and looking for win No. 20, Southwestern University Volleyball did just that, sending its seniors out with a 3-1 (25-14, 25-22, 21-25, 2516) win over the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. The win moves the Pirates to 20-9 overall.
 
Southwestern came out strong in the opening set, building an early 5-1 advantage behind kills from Tatum Ahrens and Kendall Jurgens and a pair of attack errors by the Crusaders. The Pirates continued to build their lead, extending it to 12-4 before UMHB put together a 6-1 run to cut the deficit to 15-10. Southwestern responded by scoring five of the next seven points to regain control at 20-12. The Pirates closed out the set with three consecutive points, including a service ace from Lauren McIntyre and a kill from Lucy Riggar, to take the opener 25-14.
 
The second set featured a more competitive set, with the teams trading points early before Southwestern grabbed a 12-6 advantage. Kills from Ahrens and Jurgens helped the Pirates maintain their momentum, while Riggar added a pair of kills during a stretch that pushed the lead to 17-10. UMHB responded with six straight points to pull within one at 17-16. Southwestern regained some breathing room with back-to-back kills from Riggar and another from Ahrens to make it 20-16. The Crusaders continued to fight, trimming the deficit to 23-22, but Riggar delivered a kill before UMHB committed an attack error to give the Pirates the 25-22 win and a 2-0 match advantage.
 
Mary Hardin-Baylor responded in the third set, building an early 5-2 lead before Southwestern worked its way back into the set. The Pirates pulled within one at 5-4 and continued to trade points with the Crusaders throughout the middle portion of the set. UMHB eventually created separation with a 14-10 advantage and maintained a four-point cushion at 16-12. Southwestern continued to battle, getting kills from Ahrens and Riggar to cut the deficit to 21-18. The Pirates pulled within two at 23-21, but the Crusaders answered with back-to-back points to take the set 25-21 and force a fourth set.
 
The fourth set remained tight early, with the teams tied at 7-7 before Southwestern began to take control. Kills from Evamarie Planchet and Riggar helped the Pirates move ahead 9-7, while an attack error and service ace from Ahrens extended the advantage to 12-9. UMHB managed to pull within one at 14-13, but Southwestern answered with a decisive 6-0 run to open an 19-13 lead. Riggar and Ahrens continued to provide offense down the stretch, while the Pirates capitalized on consecutive Crusader attack errors to extend their advantage. Planchet delivered the final kill, followed by a UMHB set error to secure a 25-16 set victory and a 3-1 match win for Southwestern.
 
MATCH NOTES

• Lucy Riggar led the Pirates with 17 kills followed by Tatum Ahrens with 14. Ahrens surpassed 300 kills for the season and now has 303 this year.
• Lauren McIntyre posted a match-high 25 assists.
• Alta Wilson tallied three blocks.

 
UP NEXT
The Pirates will return to action next Thursday when they travel to San Antonio, Texas, to face No. 5 Rhodes College in the quarterfinals of the SAA Tournament. Southwestern enters the tournament as the No. 4 seed.