The Oglethorpe volleyball team went against No. 24 Hendrix and Austin Saturday in Conway, Arkansas, a couple of tough opponents to face back-to-back in a tri-match setting. The Stormy Petrels took a set off of Austin when down 2-1 in the match, but fell to them 3-1 and were defeated by nationally-ranked Hendrix 3-0. The results drop the Petrels to 5-19 on the season overall and 0-11 in SAA play.

The Petrels started their day with a tough matchup against the No. 24 Warriors. In the first set, Hendrix got off to a big start and rode it all the way to a 25-8 opening-set victory. The Petrels were much more competitive in the second set, though. The two sides traded points for awhile to begin the set, leading to a 6-6 scoreline in the early-going. Hendrix embarked on a 15-1 run, though, pushing out to what seemed to be an insurmountable 21-7 advantage. The Petrels answered back, however, running off a 10-1 spurt of their own to cut the Warrior lead to 23-18. However, Hendrix was able to finish off the set from there with consecutive points, taking the stanza 25-18.

In the third set, the Petrels pushed off to an 8-5 advantage in the early portion of the stanza. The Warriors bounced back with a 7-0 run, though, and pulled ahead 12-8. Oglethorpe responded with three in a row to cut the lead back to one, but a 13-2 stretch by the Warriors closed out the set 25-13 and the match 3-0.

Later in the afternoon, the Petrels took on former SCAC opponent Austin in a non-conference tilt. The Petrels did not get off to a great start in that match, either, dealing with an 18-2 run from the Kangaroos that allowed them to pull away for a 25-11 first-set victory. The second set began as a back-and-forth affair, with the Petrels briefly taking a 5-4 lead before Austin went on a 10-1 stretch to build a 14-6 lead. Oglethorpe pulled to within five points with a 4-1 mini-run, but the Kangaroos pulled away for a 25-15 victory in the second.

The Petrels responded in the third, as they began on an 8-1 run. Austin slowly worked their way back into the set, making the score 10-7. After a brief period where the two teams traded points, the Kangaroos went on another run to push to within a single point, 16-15. The Petrels reeled off three stright to retake a four-point lead, but Austin came back again with four straight to tie the score, 19-19. The Petrels reasserted control from there, though, winning three straight points to take a 22-19 lead. From there, they closed out the set 25-22, staying alive in the match.

Austin was up big early in the fourth, however. starting the set on a 15-5 run. The Petrels were never really able to recover from that, falling 25-11 to the Kangaroos in the third set. 

For the match, freshman right-side hitter Santreece Stephens led the team with 10 kills while freshman setter Hannah Masiongale added 27 assists. Sophomore defensive specialist Gianna Zitello led the team with 14 digs, as well.

The Petrels will continue their SAA road trip Sunday afternoon when they travel to Memphis, Tennessee. There, they'll take on Rhodes at noon Eastern time.