FAYETTE, Mo. - After winning the first game, the Central Methodist University volleyball team dropped three straight games, losing to Missouri Baptist University 25-22, 17-25, 24-26, 21-25 Saturday at CMU's Puckett Field House.
 

The Lady Eagles opened the match with a three-point win in the first game off a kill by junior Erica LaBoube (Berger, Mo.). Missouri Baptist controlled throughout the second game, winning 25-17 to even the match at 1-1.
 

In a pivotal third game, CMU jumped out to a 10-2 lead, but Missouri Baptist chipped away to eventually tie the score at 12-12. The two teams battled back-and-forth, with 10 more ties in the match, including a kill by senior Viola Rotich (Eldoret, Kenya) on game point for Missouri Baptist to make it 24-24. Missouri Baptist was able to score two straight points to steal the game-three win and momentum.
 

Missouri Baptist grabbed a 3-0 lead to open game four. The Lady Eagles closed the gap to 9-10, but were unable to tie or take the lead and Missouri Baptist stretched its lead to as many as five points at 15-20. Down 18-22, CMU got to within 21-23, but a block out of bounds gave Missouri Baptist match point and the Lady Spartans finished the match with a 21-25 game-four win.
 

Rotich paced the Lady Eagles with 16 kills, while LaBoube finished with 14 and sophomore Taylor Reed (Toledo, Ohio) added 10. Rotich also added a team-high four blocks. Freshman Sarah Lewey (Liberty, Mo.) had 42 assists in the match. Sophomore Melanie Touchette (Millstadt, Ill.) led CMU defensively with 25 digs.
 

Central Methodist has a week off to prepare for its next Heart of America Athletic Conference match. The Lady Eagles will travel to Canton, Mo., Oct. 3 to take on Culver-Stockton College.