Box Score FORT SMITH, Ark. – The St. Edward's volleyball team advance to the Heartland Conference Tournament Championship after its four-set win over Dallas Baptist Friday night, 25-18, 22-25, 25-18, and 25-21.
 
St. Edward's (18-9) got on the board early in the first set, up 5-1 with the help of hitting errors by Dallas Baptist (19-9). The Patriots slowly began to chip away at the Hilltopper lead, as they finally took their first lead in the set as a four-point run at 10-8 gave Dallas Baptist the lead, 12-10. St. Edward's responded with a rally of its own as it regained the lead and pushed ahead. Up by two, 17-15, a kill from Hilltopper ELISSA STANTON sparked a six-point run to give St. Edward's a commanding lead, 23-15. The Hilltoppers would go on to win the set, 25-18.
 
The Patriots would not go down easily as they took charge early in set two, 6-2. The two teams continued to battle back and forth with Dallas Baptist holding on to its lead as the Hilltoppers trailed closely behind. Up by one, 10-9, the Patriots went on an 8-2 run putting them ahead 18-11. Dallas Baptist maintained momentum even as a late rally by St. Edward's looked promising. The Patriots won set two, 25-22.
 
 The Hilltoppers took back their momentum in the third set as MEREDITH BARD led the scoring with MARY KOEHLER putting up back-to-back kills in the early 8-3 lead. The lead proved too much for Dallas Baptist as they were unable to break down St. Edward's lead. Up at 22-18, a Patriot error and kills from Bard and Koehler put the third set away, 25-18.
 
St. Edward's got off to a rough start in the fourth set, falling behind 7-2 as Dallas Baptist took advantage of Hilltopper miscues. After a quick timeout, St. Edward's was able to regain focus going on a 6-1 run to tie the set, 8-8. The two teams continued to exchange short rallies, with the Hilltoppers able to maintain control. With the set tied for the final time at 18-18, a kill from Bard started a 4-3 run putting St. Edward's three points from taking the final set. A Patriot hitting error and back-to-back kills from Koehler and HANNAH RAUCH finished off the set, 25-21.
 
Koehler led the offense with another double-double tallying 16 kills and 12 digs. COURTNEY TREVINO and Bard followed suit with 15 and 11 kills, respectively. LOREN KELLY and MARY MCNAMARA each posted 28 assists with MICHELLE HUNDT collecting a team-high 38 digs.
 
St. Edward's will play UA-Fort Smith in the championship game on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Stubblefield Arena. Live video and stats will be available on Lions website at www.uafortsmithlions.com. The winner of the match will gain the Heartland's automatic bid to the NCAA South Central Regional.