JOPLIN, Mo. - The Truman State Volleyball squad wrapped up the Missouri Southern Invite with a pair of hard-fought losses. The Bulldogs lost to Northwestern Oklahoma State in straight sets while falling to Newman (Kan.) by a 3-1 score.

Truman returns to action next weekend at the Augustana (S.D.) Invitational with an opening match at 9 a.m. against South Dakota Mines at the famous Samford Pentagon. 

Truman State (0), Northwestern Oklahoma State (3)

In match three of the Missouri Southern Invite, the Northwestern Oklahoma State Rangers hit .462 in the first set and .289 for the match as the downed the Bulldogs 3-0. NWOSU's Addison Wimmer had 21 kills on 34 attacks (.588) while Truman was led by Hanna Berry with 13 kills and Lexi Arnel with four service aces.

Set 1: NWOKS 25, Truman State 14

Kills by Annabelle Crowder, Hanna Berry and an aces from Lexi Arnel gave the Bulldogs an early 5-3 lead and Truman was up 6-4 before the Rangers scored nine straight points and 11 of the next 12 to take command at 15-7. Truman managed multiple points just one other time in the set as Northwestern grabbed the first stanza 25-14.

Set 2: NWOKS 25, Truman State 18

The Rangers scored the first three points out of the gate and took an early 8-4 lead. The Bulldogs kept pace throughout and got as close as 21-18 on a kill by Ainsley Heise from Emma Baierl.  However, Northwestern scored the final four points to win 25-18.

Set 3: NWOKS 25, Truman State 19

Dramatic runs highlighted set three. Truman led 6-4 before the Rangers scored six straight to go up 10-6.  Leading 14-10, Northwestern then tallied eight straight points to build a 22-10 advantage. Berry and Crowder broke the string with two straight kills and followed by a Ranger attack error, Lexi Arnel recorded three straight service aces that cut the lead to six at 22-16. The deficit was unfortunately too much to overcome as Northwestern found the final three points to win the match. 

Truman State (1), Newman (3)

The Bulldogs and Jets battled in the finale of the Missouri Southern Invite to a four-set match. After splitting the first two sets, including the first "overtime" of the season, Newman would take sets three and four to claim victory. 

Jessica Proszenyak led the Bulldogs with 12 kills while Emma Baierl (21) and Rachel DeFries (20) recorded over 20 assists. Proszenyak added three aces. 

Set 1: Newman (25), Truman State 14

A nine-point run during the middle portion of the first set was the difference as the Jets took the match lead. The Bulldogs trailed 12-9 before Newman fired off nine consecutive points and forced two Truman timeouts. Truman countered with four of their own making Newman call a timeout. The Bulldogs got a double-block from Monica Brown and Ainsely Heise and a service ace from Annabelle Crowder. Following the timeout usage, the Jets scored four of the final five points.

Set 2: Truman State 30, Newman 28

The first set needing extra points to be decided this season was a wild ride. Jessica Proszenyak recorded consecutive kills and Emma Baierl served an ace to force a Newman timeout leading 12-7. That break swung the momentum dramatically as Newman used three bocks and two aces while forcing two Truman State timeouts in a nine-point run to take a 17-12 lead. Proszenyak broke the streak with a kill and Truman scored four in-a-row to pull to within two. An attack error by Natalie Meyer tied the set at 20. Newman reached 24 points and had two chances to put the Bulldogs away but a service error and attack error knotted the match at 24. Newman got another crack at the set but Prozenyak had a kill followed by an ace to give Truman the upper hand. The Jets survived three straight attempts by the Bulldogs to end the match. With the match knotted at 28, Monica Brown got a kill off a feed from Lexi Arnel and an attack error by Salome Romp gave Truman the set.

Set 3: Newman 25, Truman State 19

The Bulldogs came out with the momentum scoring seven of the first 10 points. They would hold a 12-7 lead before the Jets found their mojo and scored eight of the next nine to go up 15-13. Truman got to 17-16 but four straight forced a timeout and eventually propelled the Jets to the set victory.

Set 4: Newman 25, Truman State 22

Newman led by six early on (9-3) but the Bulldogs battled back to cut the margin to one at 12-11 and forced a timeout. The Jets then tallied six of the next eight points forcing a Bulldog timeout. Leading 20-16, Rachel DeFries got a kill and Jessica Proszenyak put down two more balls and the Bulldogs trailed by just one at 20-19. Riley Daugherty recorded consecutive strikes for Newman out of a timeout but the Bulldogs got points from Lexi Arnel and Ainsley Heise to stay within one. An attack error and bad set put Newman on the brink and one point later they would end the match with a 25-22 advantage.