SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- The John Brown University volleyball team saw a late fourth-set comeback fall two points short Friday night (Sept. 18), as Wayland Baptist (Texas) rallied after dropping the opener to hand the Golden Eagles a four-set setback (25-21, 21-25, 18-25, 24-26) inside Bill George Arena.

John Brown (6-7, 2-3 Sooner Athletic) outhit Wayland .148 (44-19-169) to .128 (52-28-187) and matched the Pioneers with 89 digs, but Wayland's pressure from behind the service line created separation. The visitors landed 11 aces against five from JBU, with six coming from Martyna Lewinska, and finished with a 52-44 advantage in kills.

The Golden Eagles found their best offensive success when they were able to stay in system. Sophomore Reese Montgomery put away six kills without an error on 14 attempts to hit .429, while senior Akayla Kador added three kills on nine swings (.222) and freshman Whitley Underdown finished with one kill on four attempts. Together, the trio committed just one attack error across 27 swings.

Sophomore Olivia Tucker provided JBU's largest offensive output, finishing with 12 kills and committing only three errors on 36 attacks (.250). Freshman Chelsea Day added eight kills, while junior Federica Ferrari finished with seven.

Sophomore Paige Addington anchored the back row with 27 digs, while junior Mallory Jury added 12. Junior Tessa Medina handed out 24 assists, collected eight digs and landed a team-high three service aces, and sophomore Taylor Kosmicki contributed 10 assists and nine digs.

Wayland (8-5, 4-1 SAC) received a match-high 17 kills, 18 digs and three aces from Deniz Yileri, while Lewinska paired her six aces with 40 assists and 12 digs. Milena Alliot-Maslankiewicz added 24 digs as both teams repeatedly extended rallies throughout the night.

Head coach Ken Carver pointed to first-ball contact as the central issue in keeping the offense from consistently operating at its preferred tempo.

"Tough loss tonight. Neither team was able to play consistently high-level volleyball throughout the match. To Wayland's credit, they did enough to earn the win, but we gave them a lot of help along the way. We struggled with first-ball contact, and as a result, we became way too reliant on our pin attackers offensively, which made us easier to defend. When we were able to pass well and run the offense at the tempo we want, I thought we were much more effective.

"We also knew coming in that longer rallies would typically favor Wayland because they're a scrappy team that finds ways to keep balls alive and eventually score, so one of our goals was to win rallies quickly when we had the opportunity."

Set 1: Wayland created the first meaningful separation of the night, turning a 2-2 tie into a 6-2 advantage before Tucker helped lead JBU back. Tucker put away consecutive kills during a four-point response, and Montgomery added another before two Pioneer attack errors moved the Golden Eagles in front 7-6.

The teams traded control through the middle of the set, with Wayland later holding leads of 10-7, 14-11 and 16-13. John Brown again erased the margin, using a Pioneer setting error, a Jury ace and another Tucker kill to draw even at 16-16. Neither side led by more than a point over the next four rallies before JBU broke through at 18-18.

Kosmicki helped ignite a decisive six-point run from the service line. A Wayland attack error gave JBU a 19-18 lead before Day put away a kill, and three more Pioneer attack errors surrounded another Day termination as the Golden Eagles surged to set point at 24-18.

Wayland fought off three set points, but Day ended the frame with her fourth kill of the set for a 25-21 victory. JBU hit .196 in the opener while holding Wayland to .061.

Set 2: Wayland responded immediately, scoring six of the first seven points and eventually building advantages of 13-6 and 18-8. The Pioneers' serving began to take a greater toll during the stretch, with Lewinska and Yileri each landing aces as John Brown struggled to consistently initiate its offense.

The Golden Eagles did not let the set get away without a push. Kador started a five-point answer with a kill, Hyke followed with another, and Kador teamed with Tucker on a block as JBU closed within 18-13. Later, consecutive Wayland attack errors and a Day kill cut a six-point deficit to 20-17.

Wayland answered each threat, however, and Yileri supplied three of the Pioneers' final four points, including the set-ending kill for a 25-21 decision that evened the match.

Set 3: John Brown held early advantages of 2-0 and 7-5 before Wayland's serve changed the complexion of the frame. Lewinska opened a six-point Pioneer run with consecutive aces, then added a third during the same service turn as Wayland flipped the two-point deficit into an 11-7 lead, forcing a JBU timeout.

Medina answered with an ace to pull JBU within 11-9, but Wayland quickly applied more pressure. Yileri served two aces during another four-point surge that extended the margin to 15-9, giving the Pioneers five aces before the set had reached its midpoint.

JBU never drew closer than three the rest of the way. Tucker finished with three kills in the set, but Wayland continued to side out effectively and closed the frame with the final three points for a 25-18 victory. The Pioneers finished the set with five service aces.

Set 4: The final frame developed into the night's tightest battle, featuring 12 ties and seven lead changes. JBU moved in front 11-9 behind a Medina ace and a Wayland attack error, but neither side could gain more than a small advantage through the middle of the set.

After Hyke tied the score at 15, Wayland finally created separation. The Pioneers scored four straight to take a 19-15 lead and later extended the margin to 22-16 behind another Lewinska ace. JBU was still down six at 23-17 before beginning one final push.

Ferrari and Medina helped pull the Golden Eagles within 23-19 before Wayland reached match point at 24-19. Carlson then started a five-point JBU rally with a kill. Hyke and Underdown followed with a block, Hyke added another kill, and consecutive Pioneer attack errors completed a 7-1 run that erased the six-point deficit and tied the frame at 24-24.

Wayland escaped the final set, however, as Alaina Baran put away consecutive kills to close the match, 26-24.

"The good thing about a match like tonight is that we get to go out again tomorrow afternoon and work to improve in the areas where we struggled," the John Brown coaching staff said. "Our team has shown a great tendency to bounce back quickly and apply the lessons learned from the previous match. We'll look forward to the opportunity tomorrow to work hard, make those adjustments and earn the split on the weekend against OPSU."

The Blue and Gold returns to Bill George Arena Saturday afternoon (Sept. 19) for a noon first serve against Oklahoma Panhandle State. The match will be simulcast live on the Urban Edge Network and the SAC Sports Network.

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