RUSTON – The Louisiana Tech volleyball team battled in every set but couldn't complete a pair of late comebacks, falling 3-0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-21) to 19^th-ranked Western Kentucky on Friday night.
 
Kaitlyn Adams led the Lady Techsters (13-14, 3-10 C-USA) with 11 kills and a .381 hitting percentage. Marie-Helene Verlinden added five blocks, and Alyssa Zucco paced the back line with 14 digs.
 
"I'm very proud of the way our team competed tonight. WKU is an outstanding all-around team with multiple hitters who have proven themselves to be some of the best in the conference. We were right there with them in each set, but then kept letting Cerino go on serving runs that made the difference," said Lady Techster head coach Amber McCray. "While it was a loss on paper, we took some huge steps in the effort and heart categories tonight, and that's a win for the culture of our program that we can carry into  Saturday at USM."
 
The Lady Techsters battled early on, tying the match at 10 after two kills from Verlinden and an ace from Carter Mirich. WKU pulled away, however, with a seven point run that gave the Hilltoppers a 24-15 lead and a 25-16 win.
 
Tech hung around once again in the second set, but their late rally wasn't quite enough to secure the win. Down 22-14, the Lady Techsters scored six of the next seven points to cut their deficit to 23-19. Elena Takova provided two kills and a block in the run, but it fell just short and WKU took the set 25-19.
 
The third set went down to the wire thanks to Adams. The senior notched five kills in the frame as Tech jumped out to 8-5 and 17-16 leads. The Hilltoppers responded with a five-point run, but Adams and Madeline Davis countered with four of the next five points to keep the match close. In the end, Tech's effort fell just short in a 25-21 loss. 
 
Tech returns to the court Saturday at 1 p.m. when it closes the 2019 season at Southern Miss. A win would give the Techsters their best season by winning percentage since 2003.
 
Follow the Lady Techsters (@LATechVB) on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to keep up with the team throughout the remainder of the 2019 season.