THIBODAUX, La. – In a closely contested match throughout, the Nicholls State University volleyball team came up just short in claiming its first conference win at home as the Colonels fell, 3-2 (25-20, 22-25, 25-17, 24-26, 15-13), Saturday at Stopher Gym.
 
The loss dropped the Colonels' record to 6-20 overall and 1-9 in league play. HBU improved to 16-10 and 7-3.
 
Nicholls hit a respectable .283 in the five-setter, getting double-digit kills from Kaci Eaton (17), Kali Schwartz (16) and Emily Weimer (13). Weimer had an outstanding .480 clip to increase her Southland leading percentage to .343. Senior Lucija Barac had 40 assists while Alexa Perry finished with 21 digs.
 
The teams traded wins in the match, with HBU winning the first and third by a combined 12 points. Nicholls picked up a victory in the second, taking it 25-22. A kill by Stephanie Tobison, who had 15 digs, gave the Colonels a 13-7 advantage. HBU fought back to come within two, but a kill by Eaton closed out the set.
 
After falling in the third, Nicholls hung on in the fourth to force a deciding set. Nicholls led 24-20 before the Huskies scored four straight points, but Eaton gave the lead back on a kill and an error by HBU ended the set.
 
In the fifth, the Huskies jumped out to a 4-0 lead before the Colonels used three consecutive points to grab a 12-10 advantage. Following a timeout, HBU scored the next four points en route to the 15-13 victory.
 
Nicholls will return to action on Thursday at home against Southeastern Louisiana. First serve is schedule for 6:30 p.m.