NATCHITOCHES – In a match littered with highlight reel defensive plays on both sides, Northwestern State came up just short in a 3-0 (25-22, 25-25, 30-28) final against HCU.
 
The highly touted HCUdefense frustrated the Demon offense through the night averaging more than 30 digs per set, keeping the ball alive for their offense to find ways to score, despite 32 total attack errors, nearly twice as many as the Demons had on the night.
 
"They (HCU) served aggressively throughout the match, and we out hit them from a percentage standpoint but there were so many times we were pulling our setters off the net," head coach Sean Kiracofe said. "I don't think we made bad choices, but I think we were a little too passive at time swith our swings but in tight games you don't want to be the one that makes an error.
 
"But HCU made great defensive plays on fantastic swings by us but then pulled us off the net so much we were getting down ball and pushing it around and, while we played great transition defense, just gave them too many opportunities to put balls away."
 
While it is the kills from the offensive side that score the points and receive the immediate reward from them, it was the play of both liberos that stood out most on Thursday night.
 
Both NSU's Ashlyn Svoboda and HCU's Kaley Feris averaged more than seven digs per set on the night, finishing with 25 and 24 digs respectively, leading the tremendous defensive efforts for both their teams.
 
Svoboda's 25 digs pushed her over the 400 mark for the season, making her the third player in NSU history with consecutive 400-dig seasons.
 
In the razor-thin difference between the two teams, each set had pivotal moments and plays that determined the outcomes. NSU held the lead in all three set at the 15-point mark and again after reaching 20, but each time were unable to make a run to close the set out or hold off the Huskies' offense.
 
In the first the Huskies erased a three-point NSU lead after the media timeout with a four-point burst, inching ahead a few serves later with a 4-1 stretch to make it 22-20. Reaghan Thompson responded with two straight kills to even the score at 22, but an Anna Gadway kill, HCU ace and NSU error gave the Huskies the set one win on the next three serves.
 
NSU held their mid-set lead in the second at 15 and into the 20s, before another 4-1 HCU stretch flipped the lead to 23-21. Teresa Garza answered with a kill and a block from Thompson and Symone Wesley held off set point, but the Huskies got block of their own to close the second set and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
Eight unforced attack errors by the Huskies in the first 15 NSU point gave the Demons the 15-9 lead at the third set media timeout. Two kills and two Demon errors after the break shrunk the gap but NSU held its edge as it closed in on the 20-point mark thanks to kills from Thompson and Garza.
 
HCU's 5-1 stretch moments later again flipped the lead late in the match and set up the thrilling third set finish that extended beyond 25 points. 
 
Both teams held of a set point before NSU had two chances to extend the match following a block from Thompson and Tessa Gerwig and another kill from Thompson, giving NSU the 28-27 lead.
 
Three more impressive rallies eventually ended with three HCU kills after that point to close the match and take the 3-0 win.
 
"It was close," Kiracofe said. "Two equal teams. We had leads in all three sets, and some significant leads at that, but just a matter of putting things away for us. It was just good volleyball on both sides and it didn't go our way this time. We're equal. We're right there and we just have to find a way to get over that hump somewhere."
 
Thompson finished the match with 10 kills and a .500 hitting percentage to go along with her eight blocks. Gerwig, in her first match back from injury, also had eight blocks and five kills. Piper Boydstun earned her 20^thcareer double-double with 15 assists and 11 digs.