GRAMBLING, La. – The ULM volleyball team rallied from a one-set deficit twice, and had an opportunity at match point, but ultimately fell to Grambling, 3-2 (25-20, 16-25, 25-19, 21-25, 17-15), Tuesday night at the Hobdy Assembly Center.
The two teams went back-and-forth in set one with the Warhawks (1-3 overall) holding on to a slim lead. The Tigers (1-3 overall) briefly took a 17-16 lead, but ULM responded with three straight points. With the score at 20-18, the Warhawks were poised to win the opening set, but seven unanswered points by Grambling handed them a 25-20 loss.
Having set one get away from them didn't seem to affect the Warhawks in set two. With the score tied at five, ULM went on an 11-2 scoring run and never looked back as it cruised to a dominating win.
In the third set, the Warhawks held a 10-8 lead, but a 4-0 run gave it right back to the Tigers. Grambling kept the lead for the rest of the set and finished with a 25-19 score.
ULM started hot in the fourth set with a 9-3 score. With an 11-5 game, the Tigers caught fire with another 7-0 scoring run before a timeout was called by head coach Matt Kearns. After the timeout, the Warhawks recovered with a 5-1 run to reclaim the lead. With the score at 24-17, Grambling attempted a comeback with four unanswered points, but a kill by
Logan Jeffus ended set four and tied the match 2-2.
In the fifth and final set, both teams traded blows with no clear favorite. The set eventually came down to a 15-15 tie before a final kill by Zyonn Smith secured the win for the Tigers.
Ariana Brown led the team in kills with 12 and produced 8 digs.
Hannah Redrow also had 11 kills.
Cameron Rogers had a team-leading 22 digs and
Morgan Howard had 21 assists.
The Warhawks continue non-conference play this weekend when they travel to the Lindenwood Invitational in St. Charles, Missouri. Their first match is at 11 a.m. Friday against Indiana State.
