Conway, Ark. –

The Central Arkansas Sugar Bears are no longer undefeated at the Prince Center, falling 3-1 to Sam Houston State on Saturday afternoon. The loss not only marks the first home loss for Central Arkansas, but it also moves the Kats into first place in the Southland Conference.

The Sugar Bears (23-4, 11-3 SLC) took the match’s first set 29-27, but the remaining three sets belonged to Sam Houston (16-9, 11-2 SLC), with the Kats taking victories of 25-18, 25-14, and 25-19. Central Arkansas hit .148 for the match, led by Alicia Dittrich, who hit .417 to go with five kills and a block. Jessica Hays led UCA in kills, turning in 15, along with six digs, three aces, and an assist. Scout Brooks turned in 11 kills, and Heather Schnars had ten. Marissa Collins assisted on 43 kills, while chipping in two of her own. Sam Houston hit an impressive .328, led by the duo of Haley Neisler and Kendall Cleveland, who each hit .500 on the day. Cleveland had 14 kills, two digs, and a block, while Neisler had seven kills, seven blocks, and two digs. Kaylee Hawkins had turned in a double-double for the match, tallying team-highs of 18 kills and 17 digs. Tayler Gray dished out 45 assists while also collecting 15 digs, four blocks, and two kills.

Central Arkansas returns to the court on Thursday night, facing off against Lamar at 7:00 in Beaumont, Texas. They then travel to Lake Charles, Louisiana to face off against McNeese State.