NEW ORLEANS – Ehize Omoghibo registered 19 kills and six blocks,
Sh'Diamond Holly added 10 kills and seven blocks, but New Orleans (12-17, 5-10 Southland) fell to Sam Houston State (15-12, 11-4 Southland) 3-1 Thursday at the Human Performance Center.
FIRST SET
The Bearkats got off to a hot start after they scored on 12 of the first 18 rallies. The road team continued to extend the advantage from there. Trailing 22-10, New Orleans got three straight points on the service rotation of Omoghibo but Sam Houston State was able to eventually see out the opening set.
SECOND SET
New Orleans was well within striking distance early on as three Vega kills helped set the tone. Sam Houston State held an 11-9 lead at that point, which they extended to as much as five. New Orleans fought their way back to within one, down 23-22. However, a Bearkat kill and ensuing block put the finishing touches on a 2-0 lead.
THIRD SET
The block helped the Privateers establish early momentum in their favor. Two blocks in consecutive rallies helped build a 4-1 lead. Sam Houston State spurted to a short-lived 9-8 advantage with four straight rallies won but the Privateers got the lead back quickly. The Bearkats eventually got back to level terms at 22-22, but two straight Privateer points helped set up set point, which was converted two rallies later.
FOURTH SET
The Privateers led early and hit .323 in the set,
Andrea Nava posted back-to-back aces to force a Bearkat timeout but Sam Houston State squeaked ahead to take the set 26-24.
NEXT UP
Senior day is Saturday at noon and the Privateers will honor
Andrea Nava,
Brianna Vega and
Ehize Omoghibo prior to the start of the final game in the 2019 regular season.
