TOPEKA, Kan. – Despite posting another straight-set victory over Arkansas-Monticello to kick off the Ichabod Classic, Drury volleyball saw its seven-match win streak come to an end in a five-set decision against Southwest Oklahoma State to conclude the opening day of play at Lee Arena.

Drury rolled to its seventh consecutive sweep (25-12, 25-7, 25-23) against Arkansas-Monticello (2-9), using a critical first-set scoring run and a stifling defense to establish an early advantage. The Panthers held UAM (2-9) to .039 hitting for the match, while Chaney Barth led the offense with 10 kills.

The Panthers (8-2) rallied from a pair of one-set deficits to force a fifth set against SWOSU (7-3), but the Bulldogs climbed back from a 12-9 deficit to claim the decisive stanza and hand DU its first setback (24-26, 31-29, 21-25, 25-13, 13-15) since Aug. 29. Abby Renshaw recorded career highs of 21 kills and 14 digs, while Jacy Bray logged a double-double of her own with 49 assists -- a personal best -- and 24 digs to spearhead the Panthers' attack.

HOW IT HAPPENED - DRURY 3, ARKANSAS-MONTICELLO 0

• Drury limited the Weevils to a -.065 hitting in the opening set, using an 18-5 scoring spurt to seize control.
• After trading points to a 5-5 deadlock, a Skylar Hilton kill opened what would prove to be the decisive run for the Panthers.
• Hilton teamed with Renshaw for seven kills during the Panthers' key run, with DU hitting .333 for the set.
• The Panthers seized control of the second set with another big scoring run, as Taylor Wood fueled a 12-1 outburst with three service aces.
• Barth added three kills during the key stretch, as DU built a 14-3 cushion.
• DU hit .480 as a team and totaled five aces, ending the set on a 23-4 run.
• A pair of kills from Hilton helped the Panthers close the gap to 11-9, before the Weevils won four of the next five points to reclaim a five-point margin.
• After a kill by Wood stopped the UAM run, Renshaw delivered one of her five third-set kills, as well as a service ace to draw DU to within one point.
• The Weevils momentarily pulled away for an 18-15 edge, but a kill by Barth and a pair of UAM errors leveled the score.
• The two clubs traded the lead several times down the stretch before Gracie Kimrey's kill handed DU the upper hand for good, and a UAM attack error closed out the set -- and match -- for the Panthers.

HOW IT HAPPENED - SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE 3, DRURY 2

• SWOSU halted the Panthers' string of 21 consecutive sets won, outlasting Drury for a 26-24 decision in the opening frame.
• The Panthers bounced back to level the score, claiming a second set that featured 16 ties and four lead changes.
• DU hit .300 as a club, thanks in large part to the duo of Renshaw and Hilton, who combined for 10 kills in the set.
• In the third set, the Bulldogs overcame an early 7-6 Panther advantage by claiming nine of the next 12 points to take a 15-10 cushion.
• The Panthers clawed their way back to within one point, before SWOSU won four of five points to reclaim control; the Bulldogs closed out the 25-21 win, as Jenna Houk tallied five of her 18 kills during the set.
• It would be Drury's turn in the fourth, as an 8-0 spurt -- fueled by three of Renshaw's six kills in the set -- gave the Panthers a lead they would not relinquish.
• DU cruised to the 25-13 victory by hitting .379 and winning 16 of the final 21 points.
• The Panthers built another lead in the deciding set, using one of Bray's career-high seven kills, along with a Jenna LaBarge service ace to take a 12-9 lead.
• After the Bulldogs rallied for three straight points, an attack error once again gave DU the lead and brought the Panthers to within two points of victory.
• But back-to-back kills by Houk, followed by a block by the tandem of Katja Blanchat and Morgan Ritchie sealed the victory for SWOSU and halted the Panthers' longest win streak in seven years.

NOTABLES

• With eight wins in its first 10 matches, Drury has matched its best start since 2017, when the Panthers opened 9-1.
• Drury head coach Kelly Richardson's 8-2 record marks the best start by a first-year Panthers head coach on record, topping Jenifer Bahner-Hill (2014) and Ashleigh Fitzgerald (2009), who eached posted 7-3 starts.
• Drury's streak of seven consecutive three-set sweeps is the first on record, dating back to 1977; the Panthers had produced eight different win streaks of at least six consecutive straight-set victories, but none of them have included more than five consecutive wins under a best-of-five format. 
• Hilton, the reigning GLVC Offensive Player of the Week, hit .600 with nine kills vs. UAM, while Kimrey led the Panthers with her .667 hitting percentage in the opener.
• Hilton's 16 kills vs. SWOSU marked a career best for the sophomore; Kimrey added nine more kills and six blocks against the Bulldogs.
• Barth's back-to-back 10-kill efforts Friday marked her fifth and sixth double-digit total in 10 matches this season.
• Renshaw narrowly missed a second double-double on the day with her 9-kill, 13-dig effort against UAM.
• Wood turned in another productive performance in the opening match, finishing with four kills, six assists, seven digs, three aces and one block; she complemented that effort with six kills and seven blocks in the nightcap Friday.
• Isy Purrington produced career highs of three assists and two blocks in her two sets against UAM.

QUOTABLES
"We continued to see good things today, and now have to focus on our consistency and confidence in tight situations," Richardson stated. "This will keep improving the more we play, and learn to work through those big moments together as a team."

UP NEXT
The Panthers wrap up their weekend at the Ichabod Classic with a 3 p.m., contest Saturday (Sept. 12) against No. 4 Washburn.

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