Volleyball Netters Come Up Short to DBU

Lady Patriots Sweep Three Close Games

OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma -- The Southwestern Assemblies of God University women's volleyball team will bring their season to a close on Saturday morning at the National Christian College Athletic Association's Central Regional. The Lady Lions dropped a best-of-five match to Dallas Baptist University, 3-0, on Friday evening.

SAGU lost the opener by a 25-20 count. They battled the Lady Patriots in the following sets, eventually falling by identical 25-22 decisions. DBU, now 17-18, advances to Saturday's 1:00pm championship against Colorado Christian University (17-15).

The winner of the clash of the top two seeds will earn a berth in the NCCAA Nationals. An 8-team field will convene in Orlando over December 2-4.

Southwestern had won four of the previous five Central Regional titles.

Five Straight 20-Win Seasons Comes to an End

The setback also prevented the Lady Lions from extending their string of 20-win seasons to six. With an 18-18 mark, they needed to win the Central to add to their recent surge in success. No other team in the Red River Athletic Conference can match the Lady Lions consistent level of triumphs. It was a noteworthy benchmark in the school's athletic program history.  

"Our kids played great," said Head Coach Hank Moore. "I'm very proud of them all."  SAGU has enjoyed a campaign filled with numerous accomplishments during a rebuilding year which brought six freshmen to the team. Their future promise is bright.

Saturday Consolation: SAGU vs. Mid-America

The Lady Lions will finish their season at 11:00am Saturday when they take on Mid-America Christian (14-24) on their home court in the Third Place Consolation match. SAGU began the season with a 3-2 tournament loss to MACU in Fort Worth.

A year ago Team Lioness dominated four matches against the Lady Evangels. Southwestern swept them three times, 3-0, and took the other by a 3-1 count. Two of their meetings were at the Central Regional in Denver.

Central Regional Results

In other Central Regional action, Mid-America Christian rolled past Southwestern Christian University (12-22-1), 3-0; 25-10, 25-19 and 25-9.

The MACU Lady Evangels then faced the top-seeded Colorado Christian. The Cougars thumped Mid-America, 3-1, to move ahead to the finals on Saturday. CCU took each set, except the second; 25-17, 23-25, 25-20 and 25-15.

Photos from the tournament will be posted next week.