SE Athletics
BETHANY – After falling behind 2-0 in the match, Southeastern Oklahoma State wins three straight sets to complete the reverse sweep over Southern Nazarene 3-2 to clinch a spot in the 2024 GAC Tournament.
Sports presented by Indian Nation Wholesale
“Wow, what a commitment to each other tonight. To come back being down 0-2 in another gym and on senior night is a huge testament to the work that we are putting in,” head coach Nicole Solum-Mitchell said. “Maci did a great job coming off the bench and doing her job. The bench was crucial in giving everyone confidence going into the 3rd and 4th set. I’m just so honored to be here with this group,” said coach Solum-Mitchell.
D’Nari Mills and Noelia Rocha led the attack with 20 and 14 kills, respectively, while Ruthie Forson dished out 44 assists and added 18 digs for a double-double. Maci Morrison provided 3.0 blocks and six kills at the net, and Patience Lewis would lead the back row with a team-high 28 digs.
SET ONE
A back-and-forth set saw five ties in the first ten points at 5-all. The Crimson Storm found the first breakthrough on a 3-0 burst and was quickly matched by another burst of points to give SNU a 14-10 edge. Two kills by Mills followed by a 3-0 run capped off by a kill from Rocha tied the frame again 16-all, but SE soon fell behind after a 4-0 run by SNU.
Southeastern battled back to tie the set for the eighth time in the frame at 21-all with kills from Rocha and Faith Kruebbe. Another two kills by Kruebbe kept the score locked at 23-all before back-to-back points by Southern Nazarene pushed the Crimson Storm to a 25-23 set win.
SET TWO
Southern Nazarene built a 5-1 lead to start the set, but the blue-and-gold soon found themselves in front on a 5-0 run capped off by a kill from Mills, 7-5. From there, the two sides continued to trade points, with the set tied 14-14. The Crimson Storm started to find separation on a 6-0 run to lead 20-15.
SE chipped away at the SNU lead with three kills from Mills and another from Rocha to cut the gap to 22-20 and force a time from the Crimson Storm. The Savage Storm’s rally would fall short, with SNU taking the second set 25-21.
SET THREE
SE and SNU opened the set going point-for-point, and the Crimson Storm soon took the lead on a 4-0 run, 8-5. SNU held a 15-10 edge at the first break following a timeout by Southeastern after a 4-1 burst. SE started to find its footing, cutting the gap to three before going on a 5-0 run to take the lead 18-17.
SE tied it 18-18 with an attack error by the Crimson Storm and went point-for-point with SNU tied 21-21. The Crimson Storm used a timeout after Southeastern took a 22-21 lead, and the blue-and-gold would close out the set on 3-0, capped off by an ace from Kruebbe to win the frame 25-21.
SET FOUR
Southeastern took its first lead of the set at 6-5 after a kill by Morrison, and the Storm would not surrender its advantage for the remainder of the set. SE added to its lead on a 5-0 run with three errors from the Crimson Storm, up 14-8. The Savage Storm held a four to five-point margin over SNU through next rallies, 17-12, and a 4-0 run featuring a pair of kills by Rocha set up a SE 25-17 set win.
SET FIVE
Needing 15 points to secure a match win, Southeastern was quick out of the gates, racing ahead to a 5-1 lead. The Savage Storm led 8-4 at the halfway point but were soon under pressure by Southern Nazarene, who battled back to tie the set 9-9 on a 5-1 burst. SE picked up the pace again through Rocha, who slammed down three kills in a 6-1 run to claim the final set 15-10.
Southeastern (13-14, 8-7) returns to Bloomer Sullivan Gym on Thursday for Senior Night against Southwestern Oklahoma State at 6 p.m.