Nacogdoches, Texas – The Central Arkansas Sugar Bears opened Southland Conference play on Saturday afternoon, taking on the Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks in a meeting of the SLC's top two teams. The Sugar Bears came out on the wrong side of the decision on the day, falling to the Ladyjacks 26-24, 25-22, 27-25.

The first set would set the tone for the day, as the 673 fans in attendance at Shelton Gymnasium were treated to 15 ties and six lead changes. The largest lead of the set was three, with Central Arkansas (10-4, 0-1 SLC) taking a 4-1 lead early and Stephen F. Austin (13-3, 1-0 SLC) gaining a three-point advantage at 16-13 and 19-16. Both time the Sugar Bears would battle back to even the score, with Central Arkansas using a 6-2 run to take a late 22-21 lead. The Ladyjacks would rebound with a 4-1 run of their own however, capping the set with a kill from Ann Hollas. Sophomore Emily Doss led a Central Arkansas defense that held SFA to a .156 attack percentage in the set, digging 11 Ladyjack attacks, while the UCA attack got four kills each from seniors Kellen Dunn and Savanah Allen.

The second set saw SFA take an early 3-0 lead and never look back, with Central Arkansas tying the set at 5-5 and 21-21 but proving unable to take the lead. SFA would again get a 4-1 run to close the set. Junior Elizabeth Armstrong did a bit of everything for UCA in the set, tallying eight assists, six digs, and two blocks, and senior Samantha Anderson collected four kills.

SFA appeared to have the third set well in hand, opening the set with a 6-1 run, before Central Arkansas finally fought back to take a 25-24 lead. That would be all the Sugar Bears could muster though, as the Ladyjacks took the final three points of the set to wrap up the match. Anderson added five kills to her total in the set, while Armstrong passed out 14 assists and senior Haley Tippett dug seven attacks.

For the match, Anderson collected a team-high 12 kills, while Armstrong finished the match with 35 assists and senior Amanda Dimon had a pair of service aces. On the defensive front, Doss led the Sugar Bears with 21 digs, and Armstrong, Allen, and sophomore Amari Mitchell each had three blocks.

Central Arkansas returns home for three matches at the Prince Center next week. The Sugar Bears will host Southeastern Louisiana at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 6:00 PM on Thursday, and Houston Baptist at 12:00 PM on Saturday.