CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas: The University of Central Arkansas nearly overcame a two-set deficit but fell short as they lost 3-1 to Sam Houston. 

The Sugar Bears fought tooth in nail in each set to overcome various leads, but they couldn't make up the difference in the end. However, UCA proved that they could hang with the best of them as junior Madi Bowles had a big day today. Bowles posted 15 kills on a .294 hitting percentage. Next to her in the middle was senior Amari Mitchell, as she also had a great day. The senior posted seven kills and five blocks, all while posting a .545 hitting percentage. 

Set 1:

The first set was one of the hardest fought battles UCA has had all season. In this set, the largest margin of victory was three points in favor of the Sugar Bears at 13-10. From that point, it was both teams trying to grab the upper hand. Sam Houston would eventually take the lead and stick with it as they continuously pushed it slightly out of reach. The Bearkats eventually clinched it as they won the set 25-21.

Set 2:

The second set continued to go in Sam Houston's favor as their stout defense gave them the set. In the set, the Sugar Bears posted a .184 hitting percentage compared to the Bearkats .306. The major difference in the set was Sam Houston led the block margin 3-0. Regardless of that fact, the score remained close all the way up to the latter half for the most part. This was until Sam Houston went on a run that stopped the Sugar Bears and eventually gave them the set 25-17.

Set 3:

Going into the set, the Sugar Bears were only one set away from their season-ending. The third set would not see the Sugar Bears reach that fate as they rallied late. UCA overcame a five-point lead early in the set to set the tone for the rest of their comeback. Once the Sugar Bears reached a tie at 18 apiece, it was all Sugar Bears as they followed it with a 7-2 rally. UCA used stellar defense to overcome the early deficit as they only allowed Sam Houston a .116 hitting percentage. 

Set 4:

The Sugar Bears extended the game but would eventually fall as they dropped the fourth set 25-22. UCA battled back from an initial 10-6 deficit to making it a one-point game at 16-15. However, that would be the closest it would get as the Bearkats kept extending the lead late in the matchup. After it was all said and done, UCA dropped the set 25-22 and the match 3-1. 

UCA finished their season in the SLC semi-finals and finished with an overall record of 12-8 and 10-4 in SLC play. 

Quote from head coach John Newberry:

"I'm so proud of the way our team fought and battled this whole week. Sam Houston had a great gameplan against us and executed it very well. Their serving was extremely and caught us off guard at times, and we weren't able to bounce back quickly. Congratulations to Charlie Tidwell for making the all-tournament team. She deserves and was a huge reason we got to where we are. Thank you to all of our seniors for the resiliency, finishing their last season and year in a pandemic."