WBU Falls to (RV) Columbia in Wednesday Matinee

COLUMBIA, Mo. (10/16/24) – The Williams Baptist University volleyball team fell to Columbia in an American Midwest Conference matchup on Wednesday afternoon by the final score of 3-0.

Meadow Jones led the way for the Eagles with 13 kills on the day with a hitting percentage of .611.  Riley Henson led the team in digs with 15, and Jaycie Cook racked up 27 assists.

The Eagles started strong by taking the first three points in the first set.  After Columbia battled back, Tinleigh Ruhman tied the match back up at eight a piece with a kill of her own.  Later in the set, a bad set from Columbia gave the Eagles a 14-13 lead to force a Cougar timeout.

After Columbia capitalized on a 6-0 run to go ahead 23-17, WBU fought back with a 4-1 run of its own punctuated by an Alonna Thomas service ace to cut the lead to three. However, Columbia was able to finish off the first set by the final score of 25-21.

The Eagles struggled to find offensive footing in the second set.  A service ace from Hope Raymond brought the squad within four, but that was as close as WBU would come to Columbia in the set, falling behind 2-0 after a 25-12 set loss.

WBU bounced back to take the first three points of the third set, but a 5-0 Cougar run gave Columbia the lead right back.  A 4-1 run punctuated by a Meadow Jones kill brought the Eagles one behind the Cougars, but Columbia was able to slam the door to collect a 25-16 set win and a 3-0 final score in the match.

The loss drops the Eagles to 5-16 overall and 1-4 in American Midwest Conference play.  Williams will look to get back on track on Tuesday, Oct. 22 at home against Mission (MO).  The match is set for a 6 p.m. start time from the Southerland-Mabee Center on the campus of Williams Baptist University.