Alva Review-Courier -

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Henderson State was unable to overcome an 0-2 deficit as the Reddies fell to Ouachita Baptist 3-1 (25-14, 25-18, 16-25, 25-21) on Thursday night in the Duke Wells Center.

Courtney Bolf collected her fourth-straight double-double with 17 kills and 15 digs, while McKenzie Tuyo provided timely offense with eight kills in just two sets. Abby Blackburn and Taylor Scalzi combined for 47 of Henderson's 48 assists, Kenzie Thoman was one off her season-high with 24 digs and Matti Fairchild notched double-digit digs for the third-straight match.

Henderson will take a brief break from conference play when the Reddies do battle with Lemoyne-Owen College on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m.

SET ONE

Despite Henderson's home-court advantage, it was the Tigers who came out swinging on Thursday night as OBU led 12-6 early in the first set. Kills from Bree Sanders and Bolf sandwiched a Scalzi ace to pull the Reddies within three, but Ouachita would answer with a massive 13-5 run to take the first set, 25-14.

SET TWO

Henderson continued to play catch-up as the match entered the second set. OBU had leads of 2-0, 4-2 and 6-4 before a quick 3-0 spurt from HSU gave the Reddies their first lead of the match, 7-6. With the score tied at 11-11, the Tigers regained control with a 9-3 run that put them in front 20-14. HSU was unable to rally as OBU took a 2-0 lead with a 25-18 win.

SET THREE

After a trip to the locker room, the Reddies regrouped and came out firing in the match's third frame. An early kill from Adrianna Hartmann and an ace from Tuyo set the tone as HSU jumped out to a 4-1 lead. Ouachita had a quick answer, however, and an 8-3 run put OBU back in front, 9-7. Despite the deficit, a determined Reddies squad had a quick answer, as two kills from Tuyo and back-to-back aces from Thoman highlighted a dominant 9-1 run that put HSU up 17-11. Ouachita pulled within four, 20-16, but the Reddies took the last five points of the set to win it, 25-16.

SET FOUR

Unfortunately for HSU, the fourth set marked the second slow start for the Reddies, as OBU ran out to a commanding 8-2 advantage. Despite the early deficit, Henderson's defense began to make things difficult for the Tigers, who were unable to put together back-to-back points while the Reddies chipped the deficit down to three, 12-9. Trailing 13-9, the Reddies unleashed another mid-set run, using a 5-0 spurt to pull in front, 14-13. The lead did not last long, however, as a 5-1 stretch for Ouachita sent the Tigers back into the lead, 18-16. HSU crept within one, 21-20, but the Tigers took four of the match's final five points to pull away 25-21 and win 3-1.