BABSON PARK, Fla.—Southeastern tried to shake off a slow start in its Wednesday night Sun Conference contest at Webber International, but came up short 15-11 in the fifth set.
The Fire dropped the first two sets by the scores of 25-20 after having a tough time getting the ball through the Webber International block. WIU registered three blocks in the first and four more in the second. SEU had 12 kills and 12 errors in the second set. Southeastern held an 18-12 advantage in the second, but a streak of six straight errors put the Warriors back on top.
Things started to turn for Southeastern (21-12, 7-6 SUN) hitting .256 as a team with 15 kills and three aces to come away with a 25-20 win of its own. In the fourth, the Fire had to overcome a six-point deficit after 14 rallies and answered with a 16-6 run, getting five kills from freshman
Sandy Cao during that span.
A 25-22 win forced a deciding set.
The Fire won the first three rallies of the fifth, but the Warriors answered with a 5-0 run to take the lead but SEU was able to tie the match at five. The set was tied three more times, and the Fire were as close as one at 12-11. Webber won three of the final four rallies to claim the match.
Cao finished strong, posting 24 kills, 12 digs, and a pair of aces.
Grace Petty added 11 kills, 19 digs, and four aces.
Alexandra Postlethwaite (18), and
Holly Kaczmarek (17) were also in double figures for digs.
Postlethwaite had a match-best 53 assists.
Southeastern will close the regular season on Saturday at St. Thomas at 2 p.m.
