DENTON, Texas (Oct. 21, 2023) –  On the second day of back-to-back matches, the Texas Woman's volleyball team fell to Dallas Baptist in three straight sets on Saturday afternoon.

TWU (14-7, 6-4) finished the match with 31 kills and hit .182, while DBU (16-6, 9-2) hit .321 on 47 kills.

"Matches this weekend ended up being learning experiences for our team," TWU Volleyball Head Coach Jeff Huebner said. "Our fans, KMA, faculty and staff along with our Youth Clinic were all amazing experiences and great examples of what makes TWU such a great place. Our players did such a good job of valuing these people who support our program, and I am proud of the way we were able to invest in our community in such a big way; even after a tough weekend."
Tori Woods led the way offensively for the Pioneers in the loss, recording eight kills. Eduarda Dutra and Kady Hansen both added seven kills throughout the three sets.

Coming into the match, DBU ranked first in aces, and TWU ranked second. The Pioneers allowed the Lady Patriots to connect on just two aces, while TWU won the category with four total perfect serves. Grace Reynolds, who ranks second in the Lone Star Conference in aces with 0.49 per set, led the way for the Pioneers with two aces. Woods and Luna França each added one ace to their stat line.

The Pioneers recorded five total blocks on the day, their most since their match last Saturday against West Texas A&M. The middles, Cara Pool and Hansen, along with Kaia Saylor led the defensive charge at the net for TWU with two block assists each.

Topping the Pioneer leaderboard in digs was Dutra, who finished the match with 12 – marking her seventh match this season with double digit digs. Reynolds and Woods both added nine digs each to contribute to the Pioneers' total of 42 digs across three sets.

DBU started off the first set strong, opening with an early 10-3 lead. The Pioneers stayed connected and raised the energy to go on a three point run to cut the deficit to three, 17-14. Back-to-back kills by Dutra gave the Pioneers their 13th and 14th point. The Lady Patriots would mount some late set three point runs to keep the score out of reach for TWU. Malia Viernes held off set point with a kill, bringing the score to 24-18, but DBU closed it on the next rally to take the 1-0 match lead after winning set one, 25-18.

Looking to knot things up at 1-1, the Pioneers matched DBU point-for-point to open set two. A Saylor kill tied the score at 6-6 early on. Four unanswered points from the Lady Patriots gave them a six point advantage, 16-10. The Pioneers would go on small runs, but were unable to piece together long runs to stifle the scoring of DBU. The Lady Patriots would win set two, 25-19, to take the 2-0 match lead.

No long runs was also the story of set three for the Pioneers, as DBU led for the entirety of the set. A late three point run would bring TWU within six, 24-18, after back-to-back aces by Reynolds. Nevertheless, the Lady Patriots closed set three out, 25-18, to complete the 3-0 sweep.

Following the match, the Pioneers hosted a free youth clinic. The participants enjoyed practicing their volleyball skills with the Pioneer student-athletes.

The Pioneers are back in action on Wednesday, Oct. 25 at home in KMA at 6 p.m. Wednesday will be the Pioneers Dig Pink Match in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.