Fort Hays State Volleyball battled back to force a fifth-set with Pittsburg State, but eventually fell, 3-2 (25-22, 18-25, 20-25, 25-20, 15-10) to the Gorillas on Saturday evening.
 
FHSU (7-7, 2-4 MIAA) picked up a win in set one, but after falling in two straight, were forced to comeback against PSU (5-9, 2-4 MIAA). 
 
It was close early on, as FHSU led by four (12-8) but allowed four unanswered by the Gorillas to tie it, 12-12.  Later on, at 14-all, Fort Hays State broke out on a 5-1 to take control for good, up 19-15.  Within one of set point (24-18), FHSU allowed PSU to climb back within two, but a Tiger timeout reset the team and a kill from Mallory Flagor ended the set, 25-22.
 
In second set, Tied again at 14-14, it was the Gorillas' turn to pull away in the second, closing the set on a 11-4 run and tying the match, 25-18.
 
Out of the break, set three was again close.  FHSU fell behind early (10-7) but battled back to tie it, 14-all, before back and forth play brought the match to 18-18.  Prior to an FHSU timeout, Pitt State broke off two quick points to get separation, 20-18, and held on for a 25-20 set victory.
 
Needing a victory in the fourth set in order to extend the match, Fort Hays State would do just that, winning 25-20.  Down 12-13 early on, FHSU ran off three quick points to pull ahead, 15-13, and never relinquished the lead.  Ahead one, 19-18, a four point burst for FHSU gave the Tigers enough control for the win.
 
FHSU jumped to a 5-2 lead in the fifth set, but an 8-1 run by the Gorillas flipped the momentum and had the Tigers trailing, 10-6.  Though the Tigers broke the run with a kill from Taylor Mares, FHSU couldn't recover and dropped the set, 15-10.
 
Individually, Rebekah Spainhour led the Tigers with 15 kills, while right side hitters Flagor and Mares each had 13 kills. Teresa Wade broke the double-digit kills threshold with 10 on the evening, while Sara Hewson had nine kills.
 
At the net, Callie Christensen tallied five blocks (one solo) and Mares had four (one solo).
 
Setters Kristin Conor (29 assists) and Libby Ary (28 assists) were again even in their rotation, as both added eight digs in the effort.
 
Defensively, Libero Keanu Bradley's 23 digs was a team-high, and Hewson had 14 digs.
 
FHSU is now 1-3 in five-set matches this season. 
 
The Tigers travel to Warrensburg, Mo., next Friday to face Central Missouri.  Game time on Oct. 3 is set for 7 p.m.