SEGUIN, Texas – The Southwestern University Pirates volleyball team lost to No. 9-ranked Colorado College in the SCAC Championship semifinals in four sets.
"This was a tale of two parts of one match today," Head Coach Don Flora said. "We give Colorado College credit for playing clean and efficient volleyball and putting pressure on us early.
"And then we did the same thing back at them for two sets. This is something we can grow, develop and learn from today and for the immediate future."
Southwestern struggled to break through the Colorado College defense early, hitting .059 and .000 in the first two sets, finishing with as many kills as attack errors in the second set, totaling six each.
The Pirates broke through in the third set, punching through for 13 kills with just one error, hitting at a match-best .375 clip.
Southwestern struggled to carry that same efficiency over to the fourth set but forced Colorado College to work for its 14 kills, limiting them to just a .100 hitting percentage with 10 errors. The Pirates tied the set at 20 but Mullins recorded three kills and the Pirates committed a service and attack error to let Colorado College carry the set.
"Elleanna McGown carried the load in multiple phases of the game today. Ali, Emma, and Elle settled in well in serve receive, which allowed us to compete at a high level," Flora said. "This type of match comes down to one or two little details or plays. We continue to understand the demands of elite college volleyball each day."
McGown was electric, throwing down 14 kills on a .229 hitting percentage with nine digs and five block assists to match Colorado College's Georgia Mullins with a match-high 16.5 points. Lauren Crabtree continued to do a little bit of everything, recording eight kills at an efficient .261 clip with five digs, three block assists, and 17 assists.
Emma White finished with seven kills and 12 digs with two service aces while Ali Grona led the Pirates with 18 digs.
With the loss, the Pirates drop to 22-14, including 12-6 in conference play. They will face Austin College in the third place match tomorrow morning at 10 a.m.
