Box Score MOBILE, Ala.—McNeese volleyball let a 2-0 lead slip away Friday as the Cowgirls fell to Samford in five sets (25-11, 25-22, 19-25, 19-25, 10-25) at the South Alabama Jaguar Invitational.
Rae Myers led all players with 15 kills while
Amber Fryer chipped in with 10 kills and a.316 hitting percent.
Malina Sanchez led the Cowgirls with a .417 hitting percent and
Kelly Graham dished out 38 assists.
Bridget Justis was credited with 20 digs and
Monica Hudgins recorded five blocks.
McNeese opened the match with a first set win to take a 1-0 lead. The Cowgirls scored the first point of the match on a
Rae Myers kill. With the set tied at two apiece, the Cowgirls scored the next six points to extend their lead to 8-2. McNeese extended its lead to 20-9 on another Myers kill. The Cowgirls closed out the match by outscoring Samford 5-2 to take the first match victory.
McNeese trailed 7-9 in the early part of the second set but a kill by
Amber Fryer gave the Cowgirls a 9-8 lead. The Cowgirls then scored on kills by
Kelly Graham and Myers to extend their lead to 12-8. With the Cowgirls leading 21-16, Samford scored the next four points to cut the lead to 21-20. Two errors by Samford gave McNeese a 23-20 lead. McNeese closed out the set on a kill by
Hailee Showers to take a 2-0 overall lead.
The third set went back and forth until the Cowgirls took a 12-9 lead on three Samford hitting errors but the Cowgirls couldn't hold off the Bulldogs as they would come back to take the lead at 16-15 and one they wouldn't give up. Samford avoided a straight set sweep with a 25-19 win.
Samford picked up where they left off in the third set and jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead in the fourth set. A kill by Myers was the first point of the set for the Cowgirls. McNeese pulled to within five points several times in the latter part of the match but couldn't get any closer as they fell 25-19 to send the match to a fifth and deciding set.
After trading points in the first four points of the fifth set, McNeese scored three straight on a Showers ace and back-to-back kills by
Amber Fryer and Myers to lead 5-2. A kill by Samford and two Cowgirl errors tied the set at five points apiece. McNeese held an 8-6 lead before Samford went on a 7-4 run to win the fifth and final set 15-10.
McNeese will face host South Alabama at 1 p.m. and Houston Baptist at 4 p.m. Saturday.
