Despite 21 kills from sophomore opposite hitter Sharon Tukuaoga, the Henderson State volleyball team fell 3-1 (22-25, 21-25, 25-22, 21-25) at home to Arkansas Tech on Thursday night.

The first set was tightly contested throughout, with Tech holding a three point advantage early, but the Reddies chipping away at the lead and eventually tying things up at 20-20. From there, the Golden Suns took control, going on a 5-2 run to close and take the first set 25-22.

Set two was much like the first, with neither team able to gain much advantage early on. With the game tied at 9-9, Tech went on a gradual run of 14-7 to open up a commanding 23-16 lead. The Reddies did their best to respond, cutting the lead to three behind a 4-0 run, but the Golden Suns again closed things out to take it 25-21 and grab a 2-0 lead in the match.

Needing to win the third set to stay alive and with the score tied at 5-5, the Reddies opened up a 15-9 run to take a 20-14 lead. Tech would rally, trimming the deficit to 23-22, but a kill from senior Jessie Jacoby and a Golden Sun attack error on the final two points gave the Reddies a 25-22 win and cut the Tech lead to 2-1.

The fourth set started out promising for Henderson, as they battled their way to a 16-14 advantage halfway through. From that point, Tech took control, finishing the game on an 11-5 run to win 25-21 and take the match 3-1.

Freshman setter Haley Higgins had 25 assists, freshman middle blocker Adrianna Hartmann had five blocks and junior libero Sydney Skelton tallied a game-high 14 digs in defeat. The loss drops Henderson to 7-5 in Great American Conference play this season.

The Reddies next game is Tuesday, Nov. 1 on the road against Ouachita Baptist at 6:30 p.m. Their final home match of the year is on Thursday, Nov. 10 against Southern Arkansas at 6 p.m.