The Rams lost to the undefeated Southwestern Assemblies of God University in four sets for the second time this season on Nov. 1.
The 20-25, 25-16, 25-20, 25-20 loss drops the Rams' record to 23-4 overall and 18-2 in conference. The Lions remain undefeated at 29-0 overall and 19-0 in conference.
The Rams and Lions were pretty evenly matched with 82 digs to SAGU's 81 digs; 10 Ram blocks to SAGU's eight. But the Lions outhit the Rams 52-44 on kills and recorded five services aces in the match. Sydney Alexander led all players with 15 kills. She also helped out defensively with seven blocks, a high for the season, while Carly Unruh and
Sydney Charlton had seven kills each. Charlton also had four blocks, and Unruh had three. Ruby O'Brien provided the Rams with 39 assists and nine digs.
Andrea Malek led the Ram defense with 23 digs, and Skylar Warde had 18 digs.
In the first set, it was clear how evenly matched the two teams are as the set saw five ties before Texas Wesleyan moved ahead behind Alexander, who was on fire in the first set, accounting for seven of her 15 kills in the first set. The Rams ended the set with back-to-back kills from Alexander and O'Brien giving them the 25-20 win and momentum heading into the second set.
In the second set,Texas Wesleyan got out to quick 2-0 lead before the Lions came roaring back, building a 9-4 lead. The Rams chipped away at the lead, but SAGU never let Texas Wesleyan regain the lead to win the second set 25-16.
The third set saw a turn in momentum as Texas Wesleyan again jumped out to an early 6-1 lead behind Alexander. At 13-8, SAGU turned a side out into a 13-13 tie by capitalizing on two Ram attack errors, a service ace, and strong front row play from their hitters. The Rams kept the game close and even took the lead again, but SAGU used their home court advantage and raucous fans to help recover their momentum and a 25-20 win.
In the fourth set, Texas Wesleyan took the early lead at 3-0, but the Lions got back into the attack mode to 7-6. The Rams continued to work their front row attack, but SAGU was able to ride out the sporadic Ram assault to take the 25-20 win and the match 3-1. The win by SAGU means they will end the regular season with the SAC championship.
Texas Wesleyan ends its regular season on the road against John Brown University Friday, Nov. 4, at 6 p.m. in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. The Rams still sit in second place in SAC behind SAGU and were ranked #24 in the latest NAIA national poll.
