FULTON, Mo. - William Woods University (3-2) concluded its home invitational with a matinee matchup against a formidable Evangel University (3-0) on Saturday at Anderson Arena. The Owls ultimately dropped the contest to the Valor 20-25, 25-19, 12-25, 18-25.

Despite the result, the Owls did have some standout showings. Ivi Marcolino carried over her tremendous performance in WWU's previous match, recording her first double-double as an Owl with 12 digs and 11 kills. Also excelling on the court were Luciana Paiva Pereira with a match-high 17 kills, Erin Treis with a match-high 31 assists and Pamela Durazo with seven kills and five blocks.

In the first set, William Woods took its only lead at 7-6 when the Owls went on a 6-2 run that included a kill each from Lennon Adams, Durazo and Paiva Pereira and an ace from Allie Miller. Following that, the Valor used a 10-3 run to go up by six points (16-10) and remained in front the rest of the set.

The Owls picked up their offensive effort in the second set, tallying 14 kills with a .286 hitting percentage, while the Valor hit .176 with 11 kills. WWU opened the set with four unanswered points, with back-to-back Roberta Carlos de Silva aces ending the stretch. Remaining on top the entire set, the Owls led by as much as six points three times, the first instance at 17-11 thanks to a Marcolino ace.

Unfortunately for Woods, it didn't maintain its substantial attacking numbers in the third set, trailing throughout, even though Evangel didn't have the greatest offensive set either. The Valor had 11 kills with a .167 hitting percentage, while the Owls posted six kills with a -.051 percentage.

William Woods earned its only advantage of the fourth set at 5-4 on a Marcolino kill assisted by Treis and extended its lead to two points three times, the first at 6-4 on a Valor attack error, second at 7-5 on a Marcolino kill provided by Treis and third at 8-6 on an Evangel service error. From there, the Valor gained control of the momentum and used a 14-4 run to get a comfortable 20-12 lead as the Owls were unable to overcome the deficit.

For the first time this season, William Woods will hit the road next weekend, traveling to the Viking Invitational, hosted at Burns Athletic Complex in Marshall, Mo., by Heart of America Athletic Conference opponent Missouri Valley College. The Owls begin play Friday, facing Paul Quinn College (1-1) at 9 a.m. and York University (Neb.) (1-4) at 4:30 p.m.