The Master’s University’s women’s volleyball team lost its first pool play match to the Concordia (NE) Bulldogs at the 2024 NAIA Women’s Volleyball National Championships Wednesday, Dec. 4 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The Lady Mustangs, seeded No. 21 among the 24 teams in the tournament, lost 19-25, 11-25, 26-24, 21-25 to the No. four-seed Bulldogs.

Concordia used the block to perfection against TMU, recording five blocks in the first set alone before finishing with 11 for the match. The Master’s mustered three blocks and also fell short on kills (56-50), hitting percentage (.281 to .137) and aces (4-0).

“It was a tough match,” said TMU Head Coach Annett Davis. “We didn’t get our offense going like we should have for several reasons. And, defensively, we let them get the upper hand. We are usually a bit more scrappy and we were out dug, hit and blocked. We know we have what it takes to be successful but unfortunately we didn’t put the pieces together today. Tomorrow is a new day and I know we can do better.”

The Mustangs fell behind 16-6 in the first set, only to go on a 10-3 run to get to within three. But Concordia closed out the set on a 6-3 run to win the set by six.

The second set started close, but after a 5-5 tie, the Bulldogs rattled off six straight points to make it 11-5. TMU could only get to within five before the Bulldogs got 10 of the final 11 points to take a 2-0 advantage in sets.

The third set proved to be a battle, with The Master’s showing once again the ability to come back. Both teams went on a 4-0 run to go up by two in the later stages of the set. A Concordia kill brought the score to match point, 24-23, but two kills by Ruby Duncan and a Bulldogs attack error meant three straight points for TMU and the 26-24 set win.

The Master’s had to win the fourth set to force a decisive fifth, and three times during the set had a two-point lead. But with the score tied at 15-15, Concordia scored six consecutive points to take a commanding lead. The teams traded points, but the deficit was too much to overcome as the Bulldogs took the match with a four-point set-four win.

Grace Colburn led all attackers with 20 kills, followed closely by Duncan with 19. Kate Wagner dished 39 assists over the four sets, with McKenna Brady leading the team with a pair of blocks.

The Mustangs will play the final pool play match on Thursday, Dec. 5 against No. 13-seed Mount Vernon Nazarene University (Ohio). TMU must win the match to have any hope of getting into the quarterfinals. The match was scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. PT.

For more information visit GoMustangs.com.