SEGUIN – The sixth-seeded University of Texas at Tyler volleyball team fell just short of upsetting third-seeded Hardin-Simmons in Friday’s quarterfinal match at the American Southwest Conference Championship tournament in Seguin. The Cowgirls won the five set thriller, 25-7, 25-27, 23-25, 25-16, 19-17.

Hardin-Simmons took control early by posting an 18-point victory in the first set. However, the Patriots would recover quickly to take sets two and three. In the fourth set, the Cowgirls would use a 15-3 run to help put away UT Tyler and force a decisive set five.

In the fifth set, despite having three match points, the Patriots could not close out the win. Hardin-Simmons would take UT Tyler to extra points, where they would win the match and advance to the semifinals later in the day.

Freshman Danika Waldrep (Arlington, Texas) finished just three service aces shy of a triple-double, as she recoded 15 kills, 18 digs and seven aces. Freshman Liz Bartelson (Burlington, Wis.) followed Waldrep with 12 kills of her own.

Junior Cristy Meredith (Amarillo, Texas) assisted in 28 of the Patriots’ 47 kills on the afternoon.

Defensively, senior Megan McCarty led all players with 28 digs in her final appearance as a Patriot.

Sophomore Kelsey Winn (Tyler, Texas) and freshman Amanda Hanson (Spring, Texas) finished with four block assists each.

UT Tyler’s season comes to a close with an overall record of 13-17 and a 7-10 mark in conference play.