Ravens Volleyball dropped a home match against a tough opponent Friday night.
The Ravens lost, 3-1, to the (21) Missouri Baptist Spartans.
The Ravens took a 1-0 lead with a thrilling, 25-22, win in the first set. The teams were tight from beginning to end, with level scores of 15-15, 20-20, and 21-21 before the Ravens closed out the set with a 4-1 spurt.
It was a balanced attack in the first set as six different Ravens recorded a kill, and five players had 2 or more kills.
The first set was also the first time in seven matches that Missouri Baptist lost a set as they had swept their previous six matches.
The Spartans tied the match with a 25-18 win in the second set. MBU got out to an 8-3 early in the set and then was able to keep the Ravens at arm's length the remainder of the set. Each time the Ravens threatened to close the gap, the Spartans thwarted the attempt.
The Spartans won the third set with a 25-18 score to move in front, 2-1, in the match. Unlike the second set, it was the Ravens who took an early lead. However, MBU went on a 6-1 run to take a 13-11 lead and held onto that lead the rest of the set. The Ravens tried to claw back, rattling off 3-straight points late in the set to cut the Spartans lead to 21-18, but MBU finished out the third for the win.
The Spartans closed out the win in the fourth set, but not before the Ravens put up a fight. Isabella Franco recorded back-to-back aces to put the home side up 17-16, but the Spartans answered with 3-straight points. After the Ravens tied the score at 19-19, MBU went back in front and finished things off with a 25-22 set win, and 3-1 match victory.
Barbara Terra led the attack with 10 kills while Bridget O'Sullivan added 9, Lucy Drexel had 7, and Rayleen Gladden had 6 kills.
Lainee Mustain had a team-high 11 digs and Wren VanCleave had 10 digs to go along with 31 assists. The Ravens had 29 block assists as a team, with Gladden leading the way with 8 and JoJo Vander Woude recording 6.
The Ravens (11-12, 7-7 Heart) will get right back at it when they play at 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 25 at home against William Woods University.