EDMOND, Okla. - The Fort Hays State volleyball team couldn't keep pace with Central Oklahoma on Friday (Sept. 24), falling to the Bronchos in three sets, 25-16, 25-22, 25-16. The Tigers are now 7-5 overall and 1-2 in MIAA play, while UCO improved to 9-2 on the year and 2-1 in league action.
 
The Tigers fell behind 6-1 early in the first set but scored the next four points to battle back within one. The Bronchos followed with two big runs to pad their lead to 17-8. FHSU traded points with the Bronchos down the stretch but ran out of time to complete the comeback.
 
Fort Hays State kept things close early in the second set, but UCO began to pull away after the home team turned a 7-6 lead into a 13-6 advantage with six-straight points. The Tigers battled all the way back to tie the score at 15-15 with a 9-2 run. Emily Ellis, Claire Olson and Morgan Christiansen all recorded kills for the Tigers during the big run. UCO went back up by three, but an Olson kill and a service ace from Isabelle Reynolds helped FHSU close within one, 21-20. The Bronchos closed things out after scoring four of the last six points.
 
The Tigers scored first in the third set to take their first lead of the match. A kill from Reynolds gave the Black and Gold a 3-2 lead before Central Oklahoma took the lead for good with five-straight points. Fort Hays State later closed within two on a Mykah Eshbaugh spike, 12-10, before the Bronchos pulled away to complete the sweep.
 
Olson led the Tigers with nine kills. The freshman posted a .500 attack percentage after recording just one error on 16 total attempts. Riley Tinder added five kills and two solo blocks, while Eshbaugh had five kills and two blocks. Elysia Glowacz distributed 17 assists and one dig while Olivia Hessman added 13 assists and three digs. Jaden Daffer led the way with 12 digs.
 
While the Tigers posted a .107 attack percentage in the match, FHSU managed a .250 swing rate in the second set. UCO tallied a .333 swing rate and added nine blocks and 47 digs on defense.
 
The Tigers wrap up the quick road trip on Saturday (Sept. 25) when they take on Newman beginning at 3 p.m. in Wichita, Kan.