WESTLAKE, La. – Southeastern Louisiana dropped its Southland Conference opener in straight sets Thursday, 25-22, 25-19, 26-24, to McNeese in a contest played off-campus at S.P. Arnett Middle School.
 
The Lady Lions (2-2, 0-1 Southland) struggled offensively, posting a combined .122 attack percentage for the match while McNeese (1-0, 1-0 Southland) hit .231 as a team.
 
Southeastern led late in the initial set, 22-19, but the Cowgirls scored the final six points to finish it off. Streaky McNeese built an 8-2 lead early in the second before the Lady Lions rallied to take the lead, 17-15, on kills from Karlee Wilkerson and Kailin Newsome. The Cowgirls wrapped up the set by scoring 10 of the final 12 points, building a 2-0 advantage in the match.
 
Neither team led by more than three points in the final set, although McNeese rallied back several times from a deficit to clinch the match in straight sets.
 
Ryan Maddera, Newsome and Wilkerson each produced a team-leading seven kills for the Lady Lions. Ariana Hebert dished out 16 assists and Calli Collins handed out another 12 helpers. Collins, Hebert and Newsome each served up a pair of aces and Lizzy Low chipped in one as well.
 
Sam Gomez and Tempestt Vaughn combined for Southeastern's only block. Low contributed a team-leading 10 digs to the defensive effort.
 
UP NEXT
Southeastern returns to the court with another Southland match Friday at Lamar (0-6, 0-1 SLC). Slated to be televised on ESPN+, first serve is set for 6 p.m. in the Montagne Center. Lamar dropped its conference opener Tuesday, 3-1, to New Orleans.
 
LIONS GAMEDAY EXPERIENCE APP
The Lions Gameday Experience app puts audio, stats, video, social media and more in the hands of fans. Those in attendance can also check in to earn reward points redeemable for Southeastern-related prizes. Available for both Android and iOS devices, it can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play or by following the link www.LionSports.net/App.
 
DIGGIN' IT CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the Southeastern volleyball program are encouraged to join the Diggin' It Club. Lion volleyball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Diggin' It Club and S Club (volleyball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern volleyball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics enforces a clear bag policy for all ticketed events. The policy mirrors safety precautions required for entrance to professional and collegiate sporting venues throughout the country. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/Clear.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lady Lions Volleyball, follow @LionUpVB or @JWhiteSLU on Twitter, @LionUpVB on Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.