SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. — Texas Wesleyan (12-10, 9-5 SAC) lost to John Brown (Ark.) (14-9, 10-5 SAC) 3-1 Friday. The Rams hit .464 in their second-set win but were held to .056 and -.021 over the final two sets.
The Rams dropped the opening set 25-20 after John Brown built a 10-2 lead during an early eight-point stretch. Earlier,
Florencia Churin and
Lillian Breaux connected for the Rams' first kill, and the Rams later steadied the set with
Haley Fojtik's kill from
Kayla Myers and consecutive
Faith McClellan kills that brought the score to 12-7. The Rams continued to answer through McClellan,
Loes Peijnenburg,
Migdaly Bernal and a Bernal-
Loes Peijnenburg block, getting as close as 18-14 and 20-16 in the middle-to-late portion of the set. After John Brown reached set point at 24-18, the Rams added two more points on an attack error and a Bernal kill from Myers before John Brown closed the set.
The Rams won the second set 25-18, answering John Brown after the set was tied midway through and closing the set on a Churin kill. Earlier,
Lillian Breaux served the Rams to the first four points, with kills from McClellan and
Haley Fojtik and two John Brown attack errors, including one on a
Loes Peijnenburg-Fojtik block. After John Brown tied the set at 9-9, the Rams moved back in front and built a 15-10 edge behind a Churin kill, consecutive McClellan kills and a Peijnenburg-McClellan block. John Brown cut the margin to 15-13, but the Rams answered with kills from McClellan, Fojtik and
Malaya Young to reach 20-15. Fojtik,
Migdaly Bernal and McClellan added late kills before Churin finished the 25-18 set win.
The Rams opened the third set with the first three points, including a
Loes Peijnenburg block and a
Jordan Daniell service ace, but John Brown answered by turning a 7-4 deficit into an 8-7 lead. Fojtik and McClellan helped the Rams trade points early, and
Vanya Palmeros tied the set at 8-8 with a kill after a timeout. John Brown created separation through the middle of the set, moving ahead 15-10 and later 21-14 as the Rams were forced into their second timeout. The Rams responded with a late push, getting a McClellan kill and two John Brown attack errors during a run that cut the margin to 21-18. Peijnenburg added two late kills, but John Brown closed out the set 25-20.
The Rams' fourth-set push brought them back from a 13-6 deficit to 18-16, but John Brown answered late and closed out a 25-21 set. Earlier, the Rams responded to a 2-0 start with a McClellan kill from
Lillian Breaux and a Daniell ace to tie the set at 2-2, then added kills from
Migdaly Bernal and Churin plus a Bernal ace before John Brown built the 13-6 advantage. The comeback included consecutive assisted blocks involving McClellan and
Loes Peijnenburg, then Churin and Peijnenburg, along with a Breaux ace, a Fojtik-
Loes Peijnenburg block and another Bernal ace that made it 18-16. The Rams stayed within 20-19 on a Peijnenburg-McClellan block and Fojtik's kill from
Neeley Rutledge, but John Brown scored the next three points and finished the set after late Rams kills from Breaux and Bernal.
McClellan led the Rams with 14 kills and 16.0 points while adding nine digs and four blocks.
Neeley Rutledge recorded a team-high 15 digs and added four assists.
Loes Peijnenburg finished with eight blocks, including one solo block, and added four kills.
Lillian Breaux posted 21 assists, nine digs and one service ace.
The Rams travel to Point Lookout, MO to take on College of the Ozarks on Saturday, October 17 at 1pm.
