The SMU volleyball team was on the road in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday for their final match of regular season play. The Mustangs closed out the season by beating the Golden Hurricanes in a decisive four sets.

Next, the Mustangs travel to Memphis to compete in the Conference USA tournament. SMU is the No. 8 seed and faces the University of Central Florida at noon on Thursday.

In Sunday’s match, the Mustangs shone on the defensive end, matching their season high in totals blocks with 20.

Junior Kendra Kahanek played exceptionally on defense, reaching her SMU career-high block assists record at 17. Kahanek also recorded a double-double during the match with 11 kills.

For her efforts, Kahanek was named Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.

Helping out Kahanek’s outstanding performance was freshman Jessica Oliver, who recorded 9 block assists of her own.

SMU dropped only the first set to Tulsa after struggling defensively against the Golden Hurricane attack. In the first set, Tulsa senior Beth Hodge and junior Jennifer Eichler led the offense, recording six and four kills each in the set.

After the first-set loss, the Mustangs’ defense picked it up to win the next three sets. The third set was primarily dominated by SMU, which jumped out to a 6-0 led thanks to outstanding serving. Serving continued to be precise in the third set, helping SMU to cruise by Tulsa 25-14.

The fourth set was neck-and-neck almost the whole way, with the score tied 16-16 midway through the set. After that, SMU came alive with a seven-point run. Kahanek closed out the set to win the match with a trio of block assists.

Oliver and Kahanek led the offense in the second set for a total eight kills. Adding to Oliver’s nine block assists, she also recorded nine kills on the night. Tulsa native Dana Powell had an impressive night on both ends, recording 12 kills and 12 digs.