ABILENE, Texas – A shorthanded Texas A&M-Corpus Christi squad fought hard, playing from behind most of the night, but ultimately fell in five sets at Abilene Christian.
Mallory Moran led the Islanders with 20 kills, a new career-high for the junior. Moran also hit .308 to finish second on the Islanders.
Morgan Williams hit .333 with 10 kills on 24 swings. Both
Kristyn Nicholson and
Brittany Gilpin also finished the evening in double-digits with 11 kills, but it was not enough.
The Islanders outscored ACU on the night, but a pair of two-point losses in the first and third sets put the Blue and Green behind the eight ball. 32 Islander errors contributed to the tough night as Corpus Christi racked up more kills than ACU, but gave away plenty of points.
Tied 10-10 in the fifth set, the Wildcats finished the match on a 5-1 run to earn the victory.
Moran and Gilpin both finished with double-doubles as they racked up 17 and 18 digs, respectively.
Shanice Horn, who was forced to wear the libero jersey Thursday night, finished with a team-leading 19 digs.
In the tight sets, service aces also played a big part as ACU racked up seven to Corpus Christi's four. The Islanders finished the night outhitting the Wildcats .183 to .157.
The Islanders will look to bounce back Saturday at Southland-leading Sam Houston State. First serve is set for noon in Huntsville.
