SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— Drury edged Rockhurst 15-13 in the fifth set for a 3-2 victory over the Hawks Friday night at the O'Reilly Family Event Center.
The win gives the Panthers a 10-5 overall record and a 3-3 mark in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Hawks fell to 8-6 and 3-2 in the league.
Drury won the first two sets, taking the first 27-25 and the second 25-20. Rockhurst pushed the match to five sets, though, winning the third 25-19 and the fourth 25-20.
The Hawks owned a 6-3 lead to start the fifth, but the Panthers fought back to draw even at 11-11, then got back-to-back blocks to close out the game. Freshman
Hannah Tadlock had a block assist and a solo block in the final two points of the match to clinch the victory.
"Between every play in the fifth set, I just tried to keep reminding the girls that five-set matches are about heart," said Drury head coach
Jenifer Bahner. "Even in the moments when we were down, I thought we maintained our composure and held true to that."
Drury senior
Taylor Forth had nine block assists, seven kills, and 10 digs, while
Makina Wratten added nine kills, a solo block, and six block assists. Gabriela Olivera posted 12 kills, and
Juliana Squire contributed 10 kills and 15 digs.
Rockhurst's Morgan Conner had a game-high 18 kills.
The Panthers return to action on Tuesday when they travel to Quincy for a 7 pm game.
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