HAMMOND, La. – The two-time reigning Southland Conference regular season champion Southeastern Louisiana University indoor volleyball team saw its comeback attempt fall just short in a grueling 25-23, 26-24, 21-25, 24-26, 15-12 SLC loss to Lamar Thursday night in the University Center.
The loss snapped a five-match winning streak for SLU (18-7, 10-3 SLC) and was Southeastern's first loss at home this fall and first regular season defeat inside the University Center since a 3-1 loss to UTEP on Aug. 26, 2023. Lamar (17-11, 10-3 SLC) extended its winning streak to 10 matches with the loss.
Kyra McKelvey led the Lady Lions with 18 kills, while
Alexis Logarbo and
India Bennett added 15 kills. SLU setters
Peyton Stokley (29 assists, 10 digs) and
Ashley Richardson (26 assists, 17 digs) both posted double-doubles. Stokley's assist total tied a career-high, while Richardson set a new career-high for digs.
Southeastern finished with 13.0 team blocks, as Logarbo and
Ayla Klingenberg led the team with six apiece, while Bennett and McKelvey contributed five each.
Lexi Gonzalez finished with a team-high 19 digs for SLU, as she was one of five Lady Lions with double-digit digs, along with Stokley, Richardson, Abby Bailey (16) and
Lily Morgan (10).
The double-double efforts of Maja Malinowska (30 kills, 16 digs) and Taisha Rhone (14 kills, 20 digs) keyed the Lamar victory. Alexa Gonzalez (51 assists), Gabby Baker (22 digs) and Hailey McEllrath (five blocks) were the other leaders for the Cardinals.
Lamar took a 2-0 set lead, but the Lady Lions led wire-to-wire in the third set, holding the Cardinals to an .075 hitting percentage to stay alive. The fourth set was an instant classic featuring 12 ties and three lead changes. A Malinowska error followed by a Bennett kill sent the match into the deciding fifth set.
Neither team could gain a clear advantage for the majority of the fifth set with a Bennett kill tying the set, 12-12 – the seventh tie of the deciding period. Back-to-back kills by Malinowska, followed by a Rhone kill closed out the win for the Cardinals.
SLU welcomes SLC co-leader SFA (16-7, 11-1 SLC) for a noon match Saturday. Prior to the match, the Lady Lions will honor the senior class of Morgan, Stokley, Logarbo, Bennett and Gonzalez in a Senior Day ceremony.
Saturday's match will be televised on ESPN+ and can be heard on KSLU 90.9 The Lion, online at either
www.LionSports.net/listenlive or
www.LionUpRadio.org, via the following apps – Lions Gameday Experience, Live365, iHeart, Audacy, TuneIn and MyTuner Radio - or on Alexa speakers (skill must be enabled first). All you have to say is, "Alexa, play K.S.L.U."
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.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lady Lions Volleyball, follow @LionUpVB on X and Instagram or like /SLUathletics on Facebook.
