MAGNOLIA, Ark. – Southern Arkansas claimed the opening set of Thursday night's pivotal Great American Conference match with Arkansas Tech 25-22, but the Muleriders were unable to keep the momentum as the Golden Suns won in four sets, while knocking SAU out of tournament contention. The Muleriders fall to 6-19 on the season and 4-10 in league play. SAU heads to Arkadelphia on Tuesday, November 1 for a 6:30 p.m. first serve against Henderson State.
 
SAU hit .159 for the match which was highlighted by a .229 clip in the opening frame. A rambunctious W.T. Watson Center crowd developed early on in what was arguably the biggest match for the program since the 2015 season. The first set saw the Muleriders receive kills from six different players with four kills each from sophomores Carlin Whaley and Anna Crittenden. The latter joined sophomore Lauryn Moultrie on a block attempt to close out the set as the Muleriders rallied down 21-18 for the team's first set win in a fall match against the Golden Suns since the 2015 season.
 
A 6-2 run to open set two aided Tech in its first win of the match. The Muleriders led 19-17 in set three and played to a 22-22 tie before the Golden Suns took a 2-1 match lead with a 3-0 advantage. In the fourth set, Tech again jumped out to a 6-2 lead, Southern Arkansas cut it to 20-19, but the visitors closed on a 5-1 run to take the match.
 
Crittenden finished with 11 kills. Sophomore Landry Rogers added eight as did sophomore Isla Olivas who led the team with a .538 attack clip. Moultrie finished with seven kills. Junior Sakura Thomas led with 14 digs, junior Emily Larmeu followed with 13 and six other players recorded three. Larmeu's 23 assists paced the club and junior Morgan Schuster followed with 16.