Box Score

Dallas Baptist (4-7, 2-1) suffered their first loss in Heartland Conference action after dropping a 3-2 match to Arkansas-Fort Smith in the UAFS Mary Beth Suddeth Invitational on Saturday. It marks the fourth straight loss for DBU since the team began their road trip on Thursday.

After dropping the first set, 26-24, the Lady Patriots battled back to grab the next two frames, winning by scores of 25-22 in back-to-back sets.

With a chance to clinch the match in the fourth set, DBU fell behind quickly, 8-1. Led by a barrage of attacks from Tiara Iwegbu, Krystal Wunderlich, and Erika Papadeas, the Lady Patriots clawed their way back to within two points to trail 16-14. That would be the closest DBU would come in the fourth set, as UAFS went on to score 9 of the last 16 points, to even the match at two apiece.

In the fifth and deciding set, Arkansas-Ft. Smith built on their momentum to jump out to an early 4-0 advantage. DBU would eventually knot the game at eight and then take a 9-8 lead, following an ace from Papadeas.
The lead would prove to be short-lived, as UAFS went on to tie the match at 10 and then score five of the last six points to secure the match 3-2.

The Lady Patriots were led by the play of Iwegbu and Wunderlich, who finished with 25 and 19 kills respectively. Tyler Bradsher finished with a match high 33 assists, while Cameron Hartson recorded a team-high 24 digs.

While the loss marks the first for DBU in the Heartland, UAFS now moves to 3-0 in league play. The Lady Patriots wrap up their final game of the UAFS Mary Beth Suddeth Invitational today at 2 pm, when they take on Southern Nazarene.

Following today's final game, DBU will be back on the road to face Heartland Conference foe, Texas-Permian Basin on September 26^th, in the team's sixth game of a season long, seven game road tip.