DENVER, Colo. – The #2 Concordia-St. Paul volleyball team (3-2) dropped a back-and-forth contest in five sets (25-18, 20-25, 21-25, 25-15, 13-15) to Texas A&M-Commerce (4-1) in the opening match of the Colorado Premier Challenge on Friday afternoon.
 
The loss was CSP's first against an unranked opponent since falling in four sets at Winona State all the way back in Sept. 19, 2015 and their first against an unranked non-conference opponent since a four-set loss to West Florida on Sept. 7, 2012 at the Premier Challenge.
 
The statistics showed how even the match really was as both teams finished nearly even in every category. CSP finished with a 67-61 edge in kills as well as a .270-.255 edge in hitting while TAMUC held a 52-48 advantage in digs and a 6-4 advantage in service aces. Both teams collected 9.0 total blocks on the afternoon.
 
Brooklyn Lewis eclipsed 20 kills for the second time in five matches to start the year as she led all players with 22 kills on the day. Lewis was extremely efficient with a .447 hitting percentage on her 38 swings while she also added three digs.
 
Hope Schiller also played a key role in the offense as she grabbed 17 kills to go along with eight digs to put her two shy of a double-double. Sydney Book also hit double figures as she tallied 12 kills and a team-best five blocks while hitting .391.
 
Elizabeth Mohr finished one assist shy of 60 with 59 while also chipping in four blocks and four digs, and Tori Hanson finished as the lone Golden Bear in double digits in digs with a team-best 14.
 
The Lions were incredibly balanced as a team with 12 different players registering at least one kill, including six with at least six kills. Leading the way was Jaslyn Wacker with 10 kills while Savannah Rutledge led all players with 15 digs.
 
After falling behind 2-0, CSP responded with five of the next six to take their first lead in the opening set. The pattern continued as TAMUC took the next two before another 5-1 run gave the Golden Bears a 10-6 lead. The Lions bounced back and kept the margin within two until the 13-11 mark when Concordia grabbed five of six points to create some breathing room. The lead did not shrink below four for the rest of the frame as the Golden Bears closed out a 25-18 set win.
 
It was a back-and-forth start to the second as Concordia grabbed an early lead before Texas A&M-Commerce grabbed one of their own. With the score even at 7-7, the Lions took the lead for good with three straight points. CSP threatened to tie it up or retake the lead as they pulled within one at 11-10 and 12-11, but another 3-0 stretch for TAMUC pushed the lead to four at 15-11. The Golden Bears managed to remain within three until the 19-16 mark before a 4-0 run for the Lions put it out of reach as TAMUC evened the match at 1-1 by taking the set 25-20.
 
Texas A&M-Commerce followed up a strong finish to the second set with a strong start to the third as they quickly jumped out to a 6-2 lead. It only grew from there as TAMUC used a 5-0 burst to turn a 7-5 edge into a 12-5 edge. An extended 8-3 run a few points later pushed the Lions' lead to double figures at 22-11 as they looked to be headed for a large margin of victory in the set. The Golden Bears scraped together a feverish comeback with a 9-1 run to pull within three, but it was too little too late as A&M-Commerce closed it out 25-21.
 
CSP found themselves trailing 4-2 early in the fourth, but quickly rebounded with five points in a row as they looked to keep the match alive. The Golden Bears continued their push as an 8-2 run extended their lead to 17-9. The lead eventually hit double figures at 22-12 as Concordia rolled to a 25-15 set win to force a decisive fifth set in the match.
 
Concordia fell behind early again in the fifth set as TAMUC took six of the first eight points to build a four point edge. The Golden Bears chipped away at the lead, pulling within one five times throughout the rest of the set, but were unable to even things up or take the lead. Facing match point at 14-12, CSP managed to close the margin to within one once again, but a point in favor of the Lions gave Texas A&M-Commerce a 15-13 win in the set and a 3-2 win in the match.
 
The Golden Bears face off against the hosts MSU Denver tonight at 7 p.m. in their second contest in the Colorado Premier Challenge. Live stats and live video will be available for the match.