OWENSBORO, Kentucky -- The Storm women's volleyball team traveled to Kentucky Wesleyan College to take on the Panthers, battling it out in five sets. The Panthers won the close final set, 15-11, to take the match. The Storm drop to a 2-13 record and the Panthers move to a 3-13 record. 

The Storm and the Panthers were a strong matchup going into the first set. Kills from senior Dora Olah and junior Anna Lewis created some momentum for the Storm. The Panthers grew a 11-6 lead later in the set, before the Storm tied it back up at 12-12 after a run from sophomore setter Simone Schurr. Kills from senior Maria Blatnik, senior Jordan Taylor, junior Alexandra Matthews, and Olah kept the Storm in the game. The score remained tight with strong offense from the Storm, with the score tied again at 23-23. The Panthers took the set after back to back Storm errors. 

The Storm did not let the first set dictate the match, as they grew an early lead of 10-6 in the second set. The Panthers battled with a short run, but the Storm kept offense tight with kills from junior Katelyn McMoore, Blatnik, and Taylor. The Storm had a 20-14 lead going into the end of the set, as a kill from Olah and multiple Panther errors gave the Storm the second set, 25-16. 

Both teams fought in the third set to take the lead. The Panthers took a 9-4 lead before Blatnik put down a kill and sophomore Brooklyn Broadway went on a run to bring the Storm back at 9-10. The Panthers then took over, growing a 20-12 lead after multiple runs. Blatnik tried to bring the Storm back with a pair of kills, mixed with a service ace from Broadway, but the Panthers took the third set 25-18. 

The Panthers were up one set going into the fourth set. The Storm did not back down, as Olah started the set with a kill. The teams continued to compete, with a tied score at 5-5. The Panthers went on a long run to give them a lead of 12-6, ended with a kill from junior Peyton Lemmer. The Panthers remained competitive bringing their lead to 24-18, match point. The Storm battled back with a six point run from Schurr, started with a kill from Taylor to bring them back with a lead at 25-24. The Panthers recorded a kill to tie it up 25-25, before Taylor put away another kill. At 26-25 Storm, a pair of errors gave the Panthers a lead of 27-26. The Storm took the fourth set with a kill from Olah, a service ace from McMoore, and an error from the Panthers, 29-27. 

The fifth set was anyone's game. The score was close at 7-9 with the Panthers ahead, before Taylor and Blatnik put away more kills. The Panthers fought back with kills of their own. The score remained close at 9-12, Storm trailing. The Panthers took the match winning set 15-11 after some kills and Storm errors. 

Sophomore Sarah Leyden finished the match with a season high of 19 assists, with Schurr close behind at 18 assists. Olah led the Storm with 17 kills. Broadway picked up 11 digs. 

The Storm continue their conference play with a match against the Trevecca Nazarene Trojans on Saturday, October 1st at 2:00 PM.