No. 1 ranked Tulsa defeated the Mustang volleyball team on Saturday 3-0 (30-24, 30-25, 30-26). The loss makes SMU 14-14 for the season and 5-9 in conference play.

Junior Rachel Giubilato was able to post another double-double in the loss, with 12 kills and 19 digs. Freshman Kendra Kahanek had 10 kills and four blocks, while junior Stefanie Kons directed the offense with 37 assists and nine digs, but their efforts seemed to be in vain.

With the win over SMU, the Golden Hurricane improved to 11 conference wins for the season, a new record for the program. Tulsa is also 24-6 for the season, which is the most overall wins in NCAA play since volleyball became recognized as a championship sport. Junior Kassiaa Urnau posted her 18th double-double with 16 kills and 13 digs while junior Julia Silva also had a double-double with 36 assists and 12 digs.

Freshman Candace Davis had 14 digs in the match, which is well below her career-high of 32.

Tulsa proved why they are ranked No. 1 in C-USA by outplaying the Mustangs from the beginning. The Golden Hurricane had no problem blowing past the Mustangs in game one when they took an early lead. In game three, SMU held the lead for the majority of the game and refused to relinquish complete control to Tulsa until they tied the game at 23-23. Tulsa went on to win the game 30-26.

SMU’s injuries and rookie players have been two of the main reasons the volleyball team is experiencing such an up-and-down season. From the beginning, Head Coach, Lisa Seifert, maintained that a healthy team would be the key to a successful season. The permanent loss of team captain, Jeannette Evanco, has had a visible affect on the Mustangs’ performance.

SMU has two more matches before it closes its regular season and heads into postseason play. The Mustangs will host Houston and Rice on Nov. 10 and Nov. 12 at Moody Coliseum. The C-USA women’s volleyball championship tournament will be held at the University of Houston Nov. 16-19.