[September 23, 2008]

By: Houston Taylor

SEARCY, Ark. – Southern Arkansas fought gamely on the road, but fell 3-1 (24-26, 16-25, 25-23, 19-25) in a tough loss to Harding Tuesday in the Gulf South Conference volleyball opener for both teams at Rhodes Fieldhouse.

The Lady Muleriders (6-7, 0-1 GSC) got out to a 6-3 advantage in the opening game before the Lady Bisons (12-4, 1-0 GSC) scored three straight to tie. From that point the margin either way was never greater than two points as Harding was finally able to put the set away, and they pulled away early in the second frame for that win. SAU responded in the third game, holding a 16-8 advantage until the Lady Bisons used a 12-4 scoring spree to even it at 20-20. But three kills down the stretch from Sarah Bell, Veronica Ogbeide and Maggie Ross gave Southern Arkansas the win. The Lady Muleriders couldn’t come up with a stopper in the final frame though, as Harding held 20-11 and 23-14 margins on their way to the win.

Manuela Nesheva led all players with 22 kills and also picked up 15 digs for the Lady Bisons. Teammate Becky Townsend finished with 11 kills, and Emily Tate had 17 digs.

SAU had a balanced offensive attack with four players getting double-digits in kills, led by Danielle Sneed’s 13. Ross added 11, and Ogbeide and Bell chipped in 10 apiece. Ross had five service aces in the match, while Mallory McKee added three. Southern Arkansas had 11 as a team. Michaela Scroggins tossed up 42 assists.

Defensively, McKee had a team-high 14 digs, Sneed had 11, and Bell finished with 10. Ogbeide had nine blocks in the match, and Ross added four.

The Lady Muleriders continue conference play Thursday, hosting Arkansas Tech at 7 p.m. in the W.T. Watson Athletic Center.