(FULTON, Mo., OCT. 2)--The William Woods University volleyball team split a pair of matches on Saturday in Anderson Arena. The Owls defeated American Midwest Conference foe Harris-Stowe State University 3-0. They fell to Evangel University 3-1 in the final match of the day.

The Owls dominated the Hornets from the start in the first match. WWU won 25-10, 25-10 and 25-18. Senior Jessica Doak (Colorado Springs, Colo.) led the Owls with a match-high six kills. Freshman Sarah Wehmeyer (Carrollton, Texas) recorded 11 assists for the Owls. Sophomore Amanda Henley (Jefferson City, Mo.) added 10 digs for the Owls. The win takes WWU to 4-4 in league play.

William Woods hosted Evangel University in the final match of the day. Evangel was among others receiving votes in this week's NAIA Top 25 poll. The Crusaders defeated the Owls 16-25, 25-23, 25-20 and 25-10.

William Woods closed the first set with nine straight points to defeat EU 25-16. Junior Lauren Fleming (Granbury, Texas) recorded a kill and a block during the nine-point rally for William Woods.

The Owls and Crusaders traded points throughout the entire second set. The set was tied at 15, 16, 17 and 18 before Evangel took a 23-20 lead. The Owls rallied and trailed 23-24. Kayley Lyons finished the Owls with a kill to give EU the win, and tie the match.

The third set looked similar to the second set. The teams were tied at 14 before EU rallied to take a 20-16 lead. The Owls again rallied to close the gap to 22-20. EU took the final three points to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

EU started the fourth set with a 7-1 run and never looked back. The Crusaders went on to win 25-10 and improve to 16-5 on the season. Lyons was a force at the net for EU. She finished the match with 24 kills.

Senior Brianna Rodriguez (Camdenton, Mo.) and freshman Nicole Lolohea (Salt Lake City, Utah) each had 13 kills for the Owls in the loss. Freshman Kali MacLean added 11 kills for WWU. Junior Nicole Mannino (St. Charles, Mo.) chipped in 10 kills in the loss.

Wehmeyer and sophomore Emily Nolte (Higginsville, Mo.) had 28 and 25 assists respectively. Henley led the Owls with 16 digs.

The Owls (10-10) will return to action on October 5. They will travel to William Jewell College for another tri-match. The Owls will play host William Jewell at 4 pm, and Haskell Indian Nations University at 6 pm in Liberty, Mo.