RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – A season-high 15-kill performance from senior outside hitter Hunter Porter was not enough for the Midwestern State volleyball team in their first match of the day Saturday as the Mustangs dropped a 3-1 decision (25-18, 19-25, 25-22, 25-15) to Newman (Kan.) at the Arkansas Tech Tournament.

The Jets (5-4), coached the previous two seasons by current Midwestern State head coach Natalie Rawson, were led by senior middle hitter Ashley Gonzalez, who finished with 21 kills on a .594 hitting percentage.

Newman jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the first set before the Mustangs (4-5) pulled back within one after a kill from freshman middle blocker Kiley Beaver.

Midwestern continued to find its rhythm, forcing a Newman timeout after a Porter kill that gave the Mustangs their first lead at 11-10.  

Blocks and MSU attacking errors helped the Jets retake the lead and surge ahead to 21-14 before going to take a 25-18 first set win.

The Mustangs hit .293 in the second set to claim a 25-19 victory. Midwestern spread the offense around the court, building an early five-point lead at 12-7 following a kill from Porter.

After Newman made it a two-point contest, the Mustangs put together a 6-2 run with kills from Porter and sophomore outside hitters Meghan Bettis and Addison Semer to help Midwestern even the match at 1-1.

In the third set, the Mustangs took a 17-16 lead before back-to-back attack errors forced a Midwestern timeout.

Kills from Gonzalez helped the Jets stay in front before a kill from sophomore middle hitter Emily Harvey gave Newman a 25-22 third set victory to go up 2-1 in the match.

A 9-2 run by Newman broke an 8-8 tie to put the Jets in control at 17-10 in the fourth set. The Mustangs were unable to mount a comeback to force a fifth set as Newman came away with a 25-15 victory to win 3-1.

Freshman setter Hayden Blair recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 37 assists and 15 digs while freshman libero Matti Dix led the Mustangs with 20 digs, her third 20-plus dig performance on the season. Beaver joined Porter in double-digit kills with 10.

The Mustangs close out the Arkansas Tech Tournament at 1 p.m. against Ouachita Baptist (Ark.).