Columbia, MO - The Stephens College volleyball team fell to Crowley's Ridge College in straight sets Thursday evening at Silverthorne Arena. The Stars battled throughout the match but ultimately dropped the contest 25-10, 25-19 and 25-16.
Crowley's Ridge came out strong in the opening set, holding Stephens to six kills while capitalizing on offensive errors to take a 25-10 victory. The Stars responded with a stronger performance in the second set, recording 12 kills and improving their hitting percentage to .161. Stephens kept the set competitive with four ties and two lead changes before the Pioneers pulled away for a 25-19 win.
In the third set, Stephens continued to compete but struggled to slow down the Crowley's Ridge offense. The Pioneers recorded 16 kills while hitting .448 in the final frame to secure the match with a 25-16 victory.
Mercedes Brito and Kayla Peckham led the Stars offensively with six kills apiece, while Michalina Oles followed with five and Jocelyn Rios added four. Freshman setter Audrey Dinwiddie directed the offense with 19 assists and contributed eight digs.
Defensively, Danika Brase led Stephens with 11 digs, followed by Dinwiddie with eight and Sabrina Rodriguez with six. At the service line, Alanis Francelino recorded two aces, while Brito, Rodriguez and Brase each added one.
Stephens finished the match with 25 kills, 23 assists, 35 digs and five service aces. The Stars showed their strongest offensive performance in the second set, recording nearly half of their total kills in the frame.
With the loss, Stephens moves to 9-16 overall and 7-5 in conference play.
