Martin, TN—The Central Arkansas Sugar Bears took a three-game winning streak into the Skyhawk Invitational and faced a daunting task as they faced UT Martin on their home court. The Sugar Bears took the Skyhawks to five sets, but had no answer for an 8-0 Skyhawk run in the last set and fell 3-2 to the home team. Senior Haley Tippett finished with 10 kills and 14 digs while senior Savanah Allen and junior Abbie Harry also finished with 10 kills apiece. The Skyhawks had four players finish with double digit kills and sophomore Kenzie Hinshaw led both sides with 47 assists.
 
In the first 19 points of set one, the home crowd saw seven ties and three lead changes as both teams went back and forth early. On the third lead change at 10-9, the Sugar Bears would not look back as they held the lead for the remainder of the match and took the first set 25-19. Allen recorded six of her 10 kills in the first set and junior Elizabeth Armstrong led both sides with 13 assists.
           
The first half of the second set saw a similar trend, as there were four lead changes and four ties through the first 23 points. After a kill from Harry to make it 11-9 Sugar Bears, the Skyhawks went on a 10-1 run to take a 19-13 lead. The Skyhawks recorded six kills during the run and junior Gintare Mackeviciute had three of them. The Sugar Bears tried to claw back into the game with a 3-0 run to close the gap to 16-20, but could not finish the comeback and fell 25-20.
           
Both teams battled early in the third set and a kill by sophomore Jamie Rys gave the Skyhawks a 7-6 lead and the Sugar Bears would only tie it once more and not regain the lead in the remainder of the match. The Sugar Bears saw themselves pull within one point six different times in the set, but could not find the extra push as the Skyhawks pulled away in the end and won 25-19. After a Skyhawks attack error made it 20-19, they went on a 5-0 run to close the set.
           
With their backs against the wall, the Sugar Bears came out angry and started the fourth set on a 10-2 run. The Skyhawks would pull within three at 13-10 after four straight Sugar Bear errors, but would not get any closer as Central Arkansas controlled the remainder of the set. The Sugar Bears recorded 14 kills in the set.
           
The fifth set saw five lead changes and four ties in the first 17 points as both teams fought for the last set. After a Skyhawks service error made it 8-6 Sugar Bears, The Skyhawks went on a deadly 8-0 run to put them up 14-8 and made it nearly impossible for the Sugar Bears to survive. Back-to-back kills by Allen and Kellen Dunn made it 14-10, but a kill by Rys sealed the deal for the Skyhawks as they won 15-10 and took the match 3-2.
 
The Sugar Bears fell to 3-1 on the season and the Skyhawks evened their record at 2-2. The Sugar Bears will look to rebound with a matchup against the 2-1 UAB Blazers tomorrow at 1 p.m. as they continue Skyhawk Invitational play.