BROWNWOOD, Texas - McMurry dropped a four-set conference road match to Howard Payne on Saturday.
The 25-11, 29-27, 16-25, 25-19 decision moved the War Hawks to 4-9 overall and 0-3 in conference play.
Layleah Williams-Gibson paced the War Hawks with 12 kills, while
Hanna Rubis had a double-double with 10 kills and 18 digs.
Haley McCallick added eight kills, and
Allison Montoya directed the attack with 17 assists and nine digs.
Yasmine DeLaGarza chipped in 15 assists and seven digs.
Jalie Miller was everywhere on the back row with 23 digs, while
Rylie Patterson tallied 11 digs and
Lexi Nichols posted 10 digs and three service aces.
Kenzie Jackson added six blocks, while Rubis recorded two solo blocks and Williams-Gibson added three.
Howard Payne jumped out early in the opening set, building an 8-1 lead. McMurry answered with kills from Rubis and Williams-Gibson and late scores from McCallick, but the hosts closed out the opener 25-11.
The War Hawks responded with energy in the second frame, grabbing an immediate 3-0 lead behind early kills from Jackson and McCallick. The set turned into a fierce battle with eight ties and three lead changes. A block and kill from Rubis pushed McMurry ahead 15-12. After Howard Payne pushed ahead 19-16, Montoya delivered an ace, McCallick notched a kill, and Jackson added a kill to knot the score at 24-24. Williams-Gibson answered with consecutive tying kills to make it 26-26 and 27-27 before the opponent escaped with a 29-27 victory.
McMurry refused to back down in the third set, taking complete control midway through the frame. Trailing 10-6, kills from McCallick and
Madi Polasek ignited a surge, followed by a Nichols service ace to tie things at 11-11. Nichols' service run continued as Rubis converted back-to-back kills and Nichols added a kill of her own to cap a 6-0 run for a 15-11 lead. The War Hawks never looked back, getting four late kills from Williams-Gibson before she finished off the 25-16 win with an ace.
Howard Payne opened up a 12-4 lead in the fourth set, but the War Hawks mounted an energetic comeback. Behind Nichols' serving, McMurry put together a 6-0 run featuring two service aces from Nichols, blocks from Rubis and Jackson, and a Rubis kill to cut the gap to 19-14. Howard Payne halted the run and held on to close out the set 25-19 and secure the match.
Volleyball returns to Kimbrell Arena on October 6th to continue conference play against Mary Hardin-Baylor at 6:00 p.m.
