DENTON, Texas (Oct. 5, 2022) - It was all gas no brakes tonight in Lubbock, Texas, as the Texas Woman's volleyball team (11-7, 2-4) fell to Lubbock Christian (8-11, 4-4) in five sets. 
 
Early in the first set, the Pioneers exchanged kills with the Lady Chaps. A tied game at 17-17 pushed the Pioneers into taking their first lead of the match since their 2-0 run at the start. 
 
The Pioneers had a late lead, 22-19, in the set after a four-point run.  However, errors from the TWU offense forced LCU into claiming the first set 26-24.  
 
Set two was underway with an LCU lead of 2-0. Looking for a shift in momentum, the Pioneers entered into a seven point scoring run, but the Lady Chaps took set two 25-22.
 
The third set kicked off, and the Pioneers took the court with a vengeance. Refusing to be swept by LCU, the Pioneers locked  in and won set three 25-23. 
 
The Pioneers continued to pushforward in the fourth set, extending their lead to close the set a 12 point advantage , 25-13,  over the Lady Chaps. 
 
A fifth set thriller was the deciding factor in tonight's match. 
 
LCU did not take kindly to the Pioneers' perseverance in the third and fourth set. After the Pioneers started with an early 3-1 lead, the Lady Chaps quickly went on a 5-0 run. Although the Pioneers pushed late, they dropped set five 15-12. 
 
"Our team showed a lot of toughness tonight," Assistant Head Coach Luiza Andrade said."I'm proud of them for sticking together and trusting each other."
 
The Pioneers' offense showed balance in tonight's match. Luna Van Baars led the Pioneers with a total of 13 kills and was a match leader with 46 total attacks. 
 
Myracle Stockman was a force to be reckoned with after recording a season high 13 kills, six digs and five blocks against LCU for a total of 15 points. 
 
Erin Jones registered a season high 33 assists in tonight's match, followed by Kiana Reed with 27 assists, marking a season high. 
  
At the net, Trixie Oche led the match with 11 blocks, topping her season high. Stockman cashed in for five total blocks, followed by Jones with three. 
 
On the back court, Yanely Pabon recorded 23 digs for the night, and, as a result, the Pioneers held LCU to a hitting percentage of .150. 
 
The Pioneers are excited to be back home this weekend for two home conference matches. 
 
Friday, Oct. 7 at 6 p.m. in Kitty Magee Arena, the Pioneers will take on Cameron (5-15, 0-6) in their Annual Dig Pink match. Then, on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 4 p.m. the Pioneers are back in KMA, as they battle West Texas A&M (13-4, 6-0). 
 

-PIONEERS-