Cameron 3, A&M-Commerce 2
Location: Aggie Gym * Lawton, Okla.
Records: A&M-Commerce (1-3, 0-2 LSC); Cameron (3-2, 2-1 LSC)
Up Next: at Texas Woman's * Denton, Texas * Tuesday, Sept. 13 * 7 p.m.
LAWTON, Okla. -- Freshman Breanne Snyder had a night to remember, knocking down a career-best and Lion season-high 22 kills, but Cameron was able to get some key points when it counted, handing A&M-Commerce a heartbreaking 20-25, 25-21, 22-25, 25-22, 13-15 loss at Aggie Gym in Lawton, Okla.
"I was really pleased with how we played for about 80 percent of the match," said head coach Craig Case. "In the end, it was that extra 20 percent that ended up costing us. In this league, you need to play the full match if you want a chance to win on the road. Again, I think we learned a lot about ourselves with the way we continued to fight, and I'm excited about where this team is headed."
Snyder paced the Lion offensive attack posting her 22 kills on 45 attempts with just six errors for a .356 attack percentage. She also added a pair of blocks and four digs on the afternoon. Rachel Robertson returned to the lineup for A&M-Commerce, finishing with 11 kills on 27 attempts with six blocks.
Kayla Bond added eight kills and five blocks for the Lions with Ezon Onditi adding seven kills of her own. Morgan Moeller helped the A&M-Commerce cause as well, finishing with six kills and five blocks, while Jordan Neal dished out 45 assists, recorded 18 digs and three kills to go along with her two service aces and a pair of blocks.
Less than 24 hours after struggling to find its groove against Colorado State-Pueblo, the Lions came out energetic and energized in a competitive opening set that would set the tone for the duration of the match. The Lions and Aggies traded points throughout, ultimately finding themselves tied at 20. But it was Cameron that made the late charge, recording the last five points to take the opener.
Set two played out similarly to the first as the two teams kept pace with each other until A&M-Commerce used a 4-0 run to take a 20-17 lead late in the set. Cameron would pull to within one at 22-21, but thanks to a kill from Snyder and blocks from Robertson and Onditi, the Lions would tally the set's final three points to tie the match at the intermission, hitting .333 for the set.
The two evenly matched teams staged another battle in set three, trading points until the Lions cut the Aggie lead to one late at 20-19. This time, momentum swung in Cameron's favor as the Aggies recorded five of the final eight points to hold off the Lions 25-22. That effort was nearly duplicated in set four as once again the teams found themselves tied at 20 late in the set. But this time, it was A&M-Commerce that found its rhythym, using an impressive .478 hitting percentage to take the fourth set 25-22 and set up the decisive final stanza.
With as competitive as the first four sets were, it was no surprise that the final one proved to be just as entertaining. A 6-0 run by Cameron put the Aggies on top 12-7. Cameron maintained that edge, leading 14-10 and serving for match point. But the Lions weren't going down without a fight, fighting off three match points to pull to within one at 14-13. But the run came up just short as the Aggies got a match-clinching kill to finish off the A&M-Commerce rally.
It was a challenging first week for the Lions, playing four matches in a five game span. A&M-Commerce now gets a few days off before returning to the court, facing Texas Woman's in Denton on Tuesday, Sept. 13. The Lions then return home to the Field House for back-to-back home matches, beginning with Abilene Christian on Thursday, Sept. 15.
