Southeast Missouri State volleyball team is swept by Tennessee Tech

The Southeast Missouri State volleyball team dropped to 1-3 in Ohio Valley Conference play as it was swept by Tennessee Tech in three tight matches Saturday in Cookeville, Tennessee.

The Golden Eagles prevailed 25-23, 26-24, 27-25.

TTU (4-13 overall, 2-2 OVC) set the tone for the match when it scored the final five points of the first match to overcome a 23-20 deficit.

TTU led the second set 14-8 before the Redhawks pulled event at 21-21 on a kill by Madlyn Werth. The teams were tied at 24-24 before TTU scored the next two points to win the set.

Southeast (5-12, 1-3) led much of the third set before the Golden Eagles pulled even at 20-20 and ultimately prevailed.

Werth had a team-high 13 kills for Southeast. Krissa Gearring and Taylor Masterson each finished with nine kills. Jade Mortimer led the defense with 27 digs, while Keegan Fornoff had 33 assists.

Southeast will visit Western Illinois for a non-conference match 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Chile Pepper Festival

Megan Parks placed 43rd in 17 minutes, 34 seconds to lead the Southeast Missouri State cross country team to a ninth-place among 33 teams in the 5K race at the Chile Pepper Festival in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Kaitlyn Shea (56th, 17:49), Angie Sumner (59th, 17:53), Sydney O'Brien (75th, 18:05) and Celine Rone (98th, 18:23) rounded out Southeast's top-five finishers.

The Southeast men placed 10th in the men's 8K race, led by a 47th-place finish by Marc Maton in 24:50. Shane Brown (57th, 25:01), Jamie Zarate (94th, 25:32), Dan Plunkett (154th, 26:03) and James Kosbar (240th, 26:52) comprised the rest of the team score.

"Our women's team had another strong performance and the men ran well overall," Southeast coach Ryan Lane said in a press release. "We are continuing to improve on the men's side."

-- From staff reports