Texas Woman's 3, A&M-Commerce 1
Kitty Magee Arena – Denton, Texas
Records: A&M-Commerce (8-2, 0-1 LSC); Texas Woman's (6-3, 1-0 LSC)
Up Next: vs. Henderson State – Tuesday, Sept. 19 – The Field House – 7 p.m.

DENTON, Texas – A&M-Commerce's struggles against rival Texas Woman's continued as the Lions stumbled out of the gates in their Lone Star Conference opener, falling to the Pioneers 17-25, 19-25, 25-19, 18-25 at Kitty Magee Arena. The Lions fall to 8-2 on the year and 0-1 in LSC play.

Breanne Snyder led the way with 13 kills on the night for A&M-Commerce while Taryn Driver set a new career-best, knocking down 12 with a pair of blocks. Amy Davault and Ciara Holmes each added 10 kills for the Lions as Davault notched a team-best 12 digs to record the double-double.

Jordan Neal dished out 46 assists, continuing to inch closer to the all-time assist mark, while Snyder and Kayla Bond each led the way with three blocks.

A&M-Commerce was plagued by unforced errors all evening, recording 31 hitting errors and seven service errors, leading to 38 Pioneer points. The Lions hit .134 for the night while the Pioneers hit at a .255 clip, benefitting from a handful of easy overpasses that turned into points.

Playing in its home opener for 2013, Texas Woman's came out energized from the get-go in front of a school-record 724 fans, racing out to an early 13-5 lead on A&M-Commerce. After a mini-run by the Lions cut the deficit to five at 14-9, the Pioneers extended the lead to eight once again at 21-13. A&M-Commerce tried to cut into the gap once again but the deficit was too great as Texas Woman's took the opener 25-17, leading wire-to-wire.

A&M-Commerce played better to start the second set, matching Texas Woman's point-for-point through the early stages as the teams combined for eight ties and a pair of lead changes before seeing the Lions take an 11-10 lead. However the Pioneers were able to string together a 7-0 run to take a 17-11 lead midway through and never relinquished that lead. TWU extended its lead to seven at 21-14 before closing out set two 25-19.

Coming out of the intermission break, A&M-Commerce finally seemed to find its offensive groove, using a 7-0 run early in the third to take a 12-8 lead. Clinging to a 14-13 advantage after a Texas Woman's rally, the Lions rattled off five-straight to appear in control of the third at 19-13, only to see the Pioneers pull to within three at 20-17. But A&M-Commerce staved off the final TWU rally to take the third 25-19, iced by an ace from Bond.

However the momentum gained in the third set victory didn't carry over into the fourth as a 7-1 run by the Pioneers put them in the driver's seat with a 12-7 lead early. That run would extend to 15-2 as Texas Woman's pulled ahead by 10 at 18-8, ultimately leading by as many as 12 at 22-10. A&M-Commerce mounted a late rally, pulling to within six at 24-18, but it was too little too late as Texas Woman's closed out the match with a 25-18 fourth set victory.

The victory extends the Pioneers' winning streak over the Lions to four matches as A&M-Commerce still holds on to the all-time series lead at 40-32-1. Josie Santos led the way for Texas Woman's with 13 kills while Mallory Kuechle finished with 11.

A&M-Commerce steps out of LSC play this Thursday, September 19th, when it returns to the court at the Field House, hosting Henderson State. The match against the Lady Reddies will be a Turn Back the Clock Night as fans are encouraged to dress in apparel from their favorite time period as prizes will be distributed for the best outfits. Opening serve is set for 7 p.m. as tickets are available online at WeAreLionsTix.com as well as by calling the A&M-Commerce Athletic Department at (903) 886-5558.