ATLANTA – Texas State fell to Sun Belt Conference opponent Georgia State, 3-1 (25-13, 16-25, 25-23, 25-22), Friday night. The loss drops the Bobcats to 13-9 overall and 8-2 in the SBC while the Panthers improved to 5-14 and 3-7 in conference play.
 
The Panthers started the match with an impressive showing in the first frame. Texas State, meanwhile, countered in the second set with a dominating performance, hitting .400 with just three errors while serving up four aces with three blocks. The Bobcats continued to play well into the third set, but Georgia State was able to steal momentum and come from behind to win the set and snag a 2-1 lead in the match. The Panthers kept momentum in the fourth set, leading the whole way, to clinch the match.
 
Alexandra Simms led the Bobcats in kills with 13 while middle blocker Lauren Kirch added 10 kills, three aces and three blocks. Amanda Watkins hit .400 and finished with nine kills to just one error while adding four blocks for the Bobcats. Meanwhile, Keeley Davis added seven kills and led the team in digs with 14. Brenna Lyles, playing the fourth set at libero, finished with nine digs. Jordan Moore gave out 32 assists.
 
Texas State's .400 hitting percentage in the second set was a huge jump from the team's .000 percentage in the first. The Bobcats then came out strong in the third set, but late errors cost the team as it finished with 16 kills and seven errors on 40 attempts to hit .225. In the fourth, the Bobcats struck 12 kills with six errors on 42 attempts for a .143 percentage to finish the match at .173. Georgia State, meanwhile, finished hitting .250 with 52 kills, eight more than Texas State on one less attempt with two less errors.
 
Georgia State surprised the Bobcats with an offensive onslaught in the opening frame. The Panthers hit 15 kills on 29 attempts with just one error for a .483 hitting percentage while the Bobcats only had five kills with five errors on 31 attempts (.000). Georgia State added three blocks in the first set to surge past Texas State, 25-13, and claim a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
Texas State changed the rotation and bounced back in a big way for the second set. With four new starters, the Bobcats hit .400 as a team and added four aces and three blocks. Kirch served up three consecutive aces while Lyles added one for Texas State.
 
After just five kills in the first set, Texas State hit 11 kills with just three errors on 20 attempts for the team's .400 hitting percentage after finishing the first set at .000. Meanwhile, the Texas State defense picked up to force seven Georgia State attack errors to force the Panthers to hit just .080 in the frame. Georgia State gave the Bobcats three more points on service errors and one on a double contact to help Texas State tie the match, 1-1, with the 25-16 Bobcat win in the second set.
 
The Bobcats started hot in the third set after the impressive second-set performance. Late errors in the third set, however, derailed Texas State as the crowd helped Georgia State build momentum into a 25-23 third-set victory and a 2-1 lead in the match. Texas State built a 9-3 lead to start the match, but the Panthers clawed their way back into it.
 
Georgia State kept the pressure on throughout the fourth set, leading the entire way until finishing off the Bobcats with a 25-22 win in the fourth frame.
 
Texas State returns home next for a Sunday match against Arkansas State. It will be the second meeting of the season between the two teams, and the Bobcats will look to bounce back at 12 p.m. Sunday at Strahan Coliseum.



 

Another #ACE! Say whaaaaat? Way to go @lauren_kirch7. @TexasStateVball #AceYourFace — Derrick Shaw (@derricktshaw) October 17, 2014	@TexasStateVball @Smith15_Brooke eat em' up Cats! — Ulises Gonzalez (@TrulyUli) October 17, 2014
Great being on my flight with the @TexasStateVball team! Good luck ladies in Atlanta! #EatEmUp #classact — Michael Burns (@DocBurnz) October 16, 2014