Box Score PARKVILLE, Mo. – The William Woods University volleyball team was defeated by No. 7 Columbia, 3-2 (20-25, 25-16, 25-23, 20-25, 10-15) in the American Midwest Conference Semifinals on Friday evening.
 
Tory Wiley led the Owls with 11 kills and Abby Ferguson and Kate Doerhoff followed with 10 kills each in the contest. WWU's Brittney Engelbrecht dished out 35 assists in the match and Brooke Reed led the Owls with 23 digs.
 
The Owls will now wait and see if they have earned an At-Large selection into the NAIA Volleyball National Championship Opening Round. The qualifying teams will be announced on Monday, November 13th on naia.org at 10 a.m.
 
Game Flow
In the first set the Cougars and the Owls battled out the first few points bouncing back and forth with both teams leading. By the time the two teams reached ten points, there were nine kills, two service aces and one block between the two teams. After a kill by Brittney Engelbrecht and Kira Krebill, the set was tied at 15-15. The Cougars broke away with a two-point lead, 19-17. The Owls gained two points before the Cougars ran away with a late lead, and the set, 25-20.
 
The second set went point for point until the Owls broke away with a two-point lead after a kill by Rayleen Rivera and a block by Rivera and Abby Ferguson, 5-3. The Owls continued to hold their lead at 7-4. The Cougars continued to battle and cut the lead to four-points but after a kill by Krebill and a Cougar mishap, the Owls found themselves at a five-point lead, 13-8. The Owls kept pushing on as Rivera and Ferguson added a kill of their own, 17-10. The Owls added two more points before the Cougars went on a three-point lead, 19-14. The Owls then finished off the set with a four-point rally which included a kill by Rivera and Kate Doerhoff and a service ace by Kayton Coffee, 25-15.
 
The Cougars took control of the third set early on taking the lead, 6-4. The Owls cut the lead to one after a service ace by Kameryn Bellinger and a kill by Engelbrecht, 7-6. A kill by Tory Wiley and a Cougar mishap would give the Owls the lead, 8-7. The Cougars took advantage of an Owl service error and went on a three-point run, taking a 11-9 lead. After a kill and a block by Ferguson, the Owls were up 17-14. The Owls were able to keep their lead and add a kill by Krebill and Engelbrecht, 22-18. The Cougars threatened late in the set after a four-point run, 22-22. The Owls were able to sneak away with the win after a kill by Rivera, 25-23.
 
The fourth set went back and forth until the Cougars took the lead 11-7. The Owls would creep back after a kill by Wiley put the Owls down two, 11-9. The Cougars would continue to hold their lead, 13-9. The Owls battled back and were able to rally back after a kill by Doerhoff and Rivera, 23-20. Unfortunately, the Owls would not be able to take the lead and would fall in set three, 25-20, tying the match, 2-2..
 
With a tied match, the Owls were able to sneak away with a three-point lead after a kill by Krebill and Ferguson and a block by Doerhoff and Ferguson, 4-1. The Cougars tied the set at 4-4 and the Owls kept their lead after a kill by Doerhoff, 5-4. The Cougars then went on a heartbreaking six-point run, 10-5. The Owls scored two after Ferguson had a kill and a Cougar mishap putting the Owls down 11-7. The Cougars were at match point before the Owls were able to squeeze out two points but would fall to the Cougars, 15-10.

By the Numbers
8 – WWU had eight blocks in the contest
73 – The Owls recorded 73 digs
11 – Tory Wiley led the Owls with 11 kills in the match
35 – Brittney Engelbrecht dished out 35 assists
.155 – WWU hit .155 in the contest
4 – William Woods had four aces in the match