JACKSON, Tenn. –The West Virginia State University volleyball team fell to Missouri-St. Louis, 3-0, before suffering defeat against Union (Tenn.) by a final score of 3-0. The pair of matches took place on Friday afternoon as part of the second day of the Union University Classic.

The two losses set the Yellow Jackets back to 4-9 on the season. The Tritons of Missouri-St. Louis improved to 11-0 with their win, while the Bulldogs made the leap to 6-5 after their victory.

Despite getting swept by UMSL, West Virginia State was competitive in every set against an undefeated opponent that received votes in last week's AVCA Division II Coaches Top 25 poll. WVSU held the lead for the majority of the first set, but Missouri-St. Louis surged late to take it 25-22. The second set was even until the Tritons once again finished strong to claim it 25-20. The third set could've gone either way with USML narrowly getting the edge, 26-24.

After battling with Missouri-St. Louis, the Yellow Jackets were tasked with playing hosts Union without having a match in between to recover. The Bulldogs won the first set, 25-22, before winning the next two sets by seven points, 25-18, to end the match.

Freshman outside hitter Emily Davis posted a season-high and team-high 13 kills in the match against UMSL.  She added four service aces to bring her points total to 17, which also registered as both a season-high for her and a team-high for the contest.

Sophomore outside hitter Jenna Dufresne led her team with 14 kills against UU. Sophomore middle blocker Gabrielle Thompson also played well in the match, recording 10 kills and three blocks.

WVSU scored 56 points in the game versus Missouri-St. Louis, just three points shy of the Tritons' total.

The Yellow Jackets travel to Davis & Elkins next for the conference opener on Friday, Sep. 27 at 7 p.m.