Volleyball falls to Wichita State, 3-1

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From SMUMustangs.com:

SMU Falls To Wichita State

DALLAS (SMU)- The SMU volleyball team fell to Wichita State 3-1 (13-25, 22-25, 26-24, 23-25) on Sunday afternoon in Moody Coliseum.

Natalie Perdue led SMU (10-6; 4-1 American Athletic Conference) with 17 kills. The senior outside hitter added four digs and two blocks. Jamison Wheeler recorded her third double-double of the season with 12 kills and 12 digs. Celia Cullen passed out 47 assists and notched 12 digs, earning her fourth double-double of the year.

Naya Shime recorded 14 kills while adding eight digs and three blocks. Sina Uluave led the Mustangs with 17 digs and dished out six assists. Emma Clothier tied her season-high in blocks with seven while adding eight kills. Brooke Frazier finished with seven digs. Alex Glover tallied three kills and a block, and Lauren Ohlinger finished with two kills.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Set One:
Starting the match for SMU were Jamison Wheeler, Natalie Perdue, Emma Clothier, Alex Glover, Naya Shime, Celia Cullen, and Sina Uluave. Back-to-back kills from Perdue got the Mustangs started. Another kill from Perdue and an assisted block with Clothier cut into Wichita State's early lead. The Shockers led 15-10 at the media timeout. Wichita State took six out of seven points out of the pause to force an SMU timeout, leading 19-11. The Shockers used the separation to win the first set 25-13.

Set Two:
Back-to-back blocks from Clothier, including one with Shime and one with Perdue, gave the Mustangs the first two points of the set. The teams battled back and forth until the media timeout, where Wichita State led 15-12. Two straight kills from Perdue brought the Mustangs within two. SMU took a timeout, trailing 21-18. A Wheeler kill, and a block from Glover and Shime brought the Mustangs within a point, but the Shockers went on to win the set 25-22.

Set Three:
Three straight kills from Perdue, Shime, and Clothier gave the Mustangs an early 4-2 advantage. An ace from Clothier kept SMU in front, and two Wheeler kills, and a Shocker attack error sparked a run that forced a Wichita State timeout trailing 11-7. The Shockers brought the score within one, but an attack error and a block from Clothier and Shime kept SMU ahead. Three unanswered from Wichita State gave them the lead, but a Clothier kill evened the match at 22 apiece. A Perdue service ace and Clothier kill gave SMU a 24-22 advantage, but back-to-back points from Shockers tied the set at 24. A Shocker service error and Clothier's second ace of the match sealed a 26-24 set four victory.

Set Four:
Two kills from Perdue and one from Shime put SMU up 3-1 early. The teams went point for point until three Perdue kills, and one from Shime gave SMU a 12-9 lead and forced a Shocker timeout. Another kill from Perdue and a WSU attack error extended the Mustang lead to four. Two kills from Wheeler and one from Glover gave the Mustangs a 20-14 lead. Wichita State went on a 6-0 run to take a one point lead. SMU evened the set at 21 apiece, but two Shocker points gave them a two point edge. WSU went on to take the fourth set 25-23.

SMU LEADERS
SMU Kills Leader: Natalie Perdue (17)
SMU Assist Leader: Celia Cullen (47)
SMU Digs Leader: Sina Uluave (17)
SMU Blocks Leader: Emma Clothier (7)
SMU Ace Leader: Emma Clothier (2)

TEAM RECORDS SERIES NOTES
With the loss, SMU fell to 10-6 on the season, and 4-1 in conference.
Wednesday was the 17th meeting between SMU and Wichita State. SMU leads the all-time series 9-8.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Natalie Perdue led the Mustangs in kills (17) for the second consecutive match and sixth time this season and turned in double-digits for the ninth time.
Jamison Wheeler recorded her third double-double of the season with 12 kills and as many digs. Wheeler recorded double-digit kills for the eighth time this season, and digs for the sixth time.
Celia Cullen recorded her fourth double-double of the season (47 assists, 12 digs). Cullen has led the Mustangs in assists in all 16 matches.
Naya Shime recorded double-digit kills (14) for the second consecutive match and eighth time this season. Shime added eight digs and three blocks.
Sina Uluave led the Mustangs with 17 digs for the seventh consecutive match. Uluave recorded double-digit digs for the 12th time this season. She added six assists.
Emma Clothier tied her season-high in blocks with seven. She's tallied five or more blocks in six matches this season. She added eight kills.

UP NEXT
SMU is back in action on Friday at 5 p.m. CT at Charlotte.