Final Stats Box Score and Play-by-Play

BEAUMONT, Texas - The Nicholls State University women's volleyball team (13-11, 5-6 Southland Conference) rallied for a first set win, but the Lamar Cardinals came back to claim the next three sets en route to a 3-1 win by scores of 25-23, 19-25, 19-25, 20-25 on Thursday night.

Nicholls started strong, rallying twice from five-point deficits in the opening set.  The Colonels hit .333 (16-3-39) in the opening frame to come from behind and claim the 25-23 win and a 1-0 lead.  On the night, the Colonels were led by a team-high 11 kills from Jennifer Brandt and a team-leading 18 digs from Danielle Daigle.

However, the Colonels could not keep pace with Lamar in a hotly-contested match that saw 25 tie scores and ten lead changes over four sets.  The Cardinals rallied to hit .270 (64-21-159) to outpace the Colonels .155 (46-20-168) average.

The Colonels battled Lamar through eight tie scores and two lead changes in the second set.  But, after the Colonels took a 13-9 lead, the Cardinals went on an 15-4 run to take a 24-17 lead.  The Colonels tried to battle back, taking the next two points, but Lamar finally took set point at 25-19.

With the match even at 1-1, the Colonels looked to regain their lead in the third in what would be the most heavily contested set of the night.  Nicholls and Lamar battled through six tie scores and four lead changes.  But, after Nicholls rallied to tie the match at 12-12, Lamar put together another run.  This time, the Cardinals 13-7 run en route to another 25-19 win and a 2-1 lead.

Looking to force a fifth and decisive set, the Colonels opened the fourth set strong, taking a 10-4 lead.  However, the Cardinals put together a pair of big runs to take control.  Lamar rallied to within one as an 8-3 Cardinal rally made it 13-12 in favor of Nicholls.  The Colonels extended their lead to 15-12 by winning the next two points, but Lamar rallied once again.  This time, the Cardinals outpaced Nicholls with a 13-5 run to take the set 25-20 and the match 3-1.

The Colonels will return to action on Saturday when they head to McNeese State for a 2 p.m. first serve.