AUSTIN – St. Edward's volleyball's offense heated up late in the match but ultimately fell short as they dropped their second contest of the week 3-1 to Texas A&M-Kingsville.
 
The Javelinas started the match strong, winning the first two sets 25-19 and 25-21. TAMUK hit .289 and .237 respectively, while the SEU offense was slow to get started and were held to just .049 in the second set after a .225 attack percentage in set one.
 
Despite hitting only .184 in the third set the Hilltoppers took the win with a late set rally. Kingsville led 19-16 before St. Edward's pressed for four straight points to lead 20-19. Two ties and two lead changes later, SEU made one final run to win the set, outscoring TAMUK 4-1 down the stretch to win 25-22.
 
It was tight throughout the fourth set but the Javelinas were able to capitalize off of a pair of Hilltopper attack errors to hand SEU the loss.
 
MAYA SMALLS led the offense with 11 kills while CAROLINE SWAN, KAITLYN KRAFKA and MELISSA MCNEIL added ten kills each. EMILY TRAN and MADISON HEALD kept the TAMUK defense on their toes, posting 29 assists and 18 assists respectively. Krafka also led on the defensive side of the ball, racking up 16 digs while LAURA DOOCY posted a team-high five blocks.
 
St. Edward's falls to 0-2 on the season and 0-2 in Lone Star Conference play. They return to the court on Tuesday, February 2 as they hit the road to face Texas A&M International at 6 pm in Laredo, Texas.