GREENVILLE, N.C. – The Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team fell 3-1 on Saturday morning to the North Carolina A&T Aggies, closing out the Pirate Invitational at Williams Arena, via set scores of 22-25, 25-19, 25-23, and 25-23.
 
"It was definitely not the outcome we wanted and you wouldn't know that looking at the stat sheet," said coach Joe Morales. "We did a lot of good things beating them in a lot of stat categories, but we need to do a better job of handling the easy things and be more consistent. I see a lot of growth as a team and we are eager to win. We are just going to have to be patient and trust the process. This was a good weekend testing us and where we need to be." 

The Aggies jump-started the match by taking four of the first five points, but the Lions took advantage of back-to-back attacking errors to tie the set at five. Falling behind 18-15, a kill from Savannah Jennings (Rosehill Christian) and another attacking error brought the Lions within one, and they used a 3-0 run to take a 22-21 lead and force an Aggie timeout.
 
The 3-0 scoring run was formed by a kill from Kitana Tuufuli (St. Hedwig – Steele), an attacking error, and an ace from Avery Wilks (Mont Belvieu – Barbers Hill). The Aggies took the next point, but a kill from Tuufuli and an attacking error gave the Lions three set points, with a kill from Reese Fetty (Farmersville) securing the first set for the Lions.
 
North Carolina A&T took a 4-2 lead to begin the second set, but the Lions won four of the next five points to lead 7-5 on an assisted block from Fetty and Carley Spachman (Leewood, Kan.). Being behind 13-11 in the set, the Aggies went on a 7-0 run to go up 18-13 and closed out the set, 25-19.
 
Just like the second set, the Aggies came out strong in the third, leading 6-2. The Lions pulled to within one but trailed by as much as six in the set. A service error by the Aggies at 23-19, allowed the Lions to go on a 4-1 run, saving two set points, but North Carolina A&T took the set with a kill.
 
The Aggies jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the fourth and led for the entirety of the set. North Carolina A&T had seven chances to close out the match, but the Lions put together a 6-0 run to stay alive. However, a block gave the match to the Aggies.
 
Tuufuli picked up 15 kills, which led the team, along with four digs. Fetty recorded 11 digs, eight kills, and two blocks, and Spachman totaled six kills and five blocks. Jade Smith (Houston – Mayde Creek) totaled 27 digs, while Millie Allgood (Sherwood, Ark.) had 10, and Ellie Baumert (Dodge, Neb.) tallied 30 assists and seven digs.
 
UP NEXT
The Lions are back home in Texas for the rest of non-conference play, being a part of the Fight in the Fort next weekend in Fort Worth. A&M-Commerce takes on TCU at 1 p.m. on Thursday and UCLA at 4 p.m. at TCU.