Junior outside hitter Kailin Newsome led the way with 18 kills in SLU’s 3-1 (15-25, 25-13, 26-24, 25-23) victory over Texas A&M-Corpus; she also led the team in aces with three. 

The Lady Lions improved their overall record to an impressive 16-6 (.727 win percentage) on the season, while moving to 6-4 in conference play. . 

The Green and Gold avoided a three-game skid after losing to Texas A&M-Commerce and UIW. In those games, they were outscored 6-1. 

The Lady Lions started the game slow, losing the first set 25-15. The Islanders jumped out to an 8-2 lead and never looked back. SLU only had a 2.8% in the first set compared to the Islanders, who hit 32.3% of their shots.

In the second set, Southeastern started red hot, leading 10-5. The crowd got into the game, chanting and yelling after every point, as the Lady Lions were able to capitalize off of the momentum. 

SLU dominated the second set 25-13, hitting 30% of their shots. Texas A&M-Corpus only converted on 3.1% of their attempts. 

Head coach Jeremy White spoke about the mindset he wanted his team to come out with following their two game skid.

“We preached about having energy and intensity all week. We talked about playing a little angry at times — whatever we need to do to create some emotion —  and we carried on that message,” White said. 

Both teams traded blowout rounds in the first two sets. However, the last two would come down to the wire. 

The third set saw a lot more action between the two teams as the Green and Gold went hit-for-hit against TAMCC. Late in the set, SLU was down 14-17, then they converted six straight points, giving them a 20-17 lead. 

The Islanders would not go down easy as they made a run of their own, tying the game up.

With the game knotted at 24-24, Lady Lion Kailin Newsome hit the kill shot to go up 25-24. On their next rally, sophomore outside hitter Hannah Brewer hit the ace to win the set 26-24 for her team. 

The fourth set saw another back-and-forth battle between the two teams; however, the Green and Gold prevailed in the end, winning the set 25-23. 

“We really needed to play well, and we were proud of our kids for flipping the switch. We’ve been in a slump, but to come out tonight against a very good team and play as well as we did — I’m really proud of them,” White said after the game. 

The Lady Lions Volleyball team won three straight emotional sets after starting flat. They were able to pull together as a team and play with heart until the end. 

White also pointed out how his side is built around having a good culture, and his players love and care for each other. Every time something great happens on the court, everyone yells and cheers for each other. 

The Green and Gold start their homestand with a huge win, and will look to continue their success against HCU on Saturday at 1 p.m. The contest will take place at the University Center. Tune in to ESPN+ to watch the game live.