This past weekend brought more disappointment to the young Skyhawk volleyball team as they suffered 3-0 sweeps by SEMO and Eastern Illinois in their first two OVC matches of the season.

In the opener against SEMO, the Skyhawks got off to a strong start led by senior Rebecca Palmer and sophomore Jamie Hollins with five kills each. SEMO used an effective service game to lead by as many as four points before a late UTM rally sparked by consecutive Hollins kills to put the score at 21-19.

UTM cut the lead to two points once again but SEMO came through to claim a 33-31 win.

Game two saw the Skyhawks fall behind 2-0, only to score the next four points to claim the lead. SEMO mistakes led to a 9-3 cushion for UTM. The Redhawks then scored five unanswered points to pull close to UTM.

SEMO clawed ahead of the Skyhawks, 17-15, and eventually took the game, 30-24.

The Skyhawks came out flat in the third and final game. They were hurt by mental errors as the Redhawks built a 9-3 advantage.

The Redhawks dominated play around the net and quickly put the game out of reach. They won the game, 30-11, to clinch the sweep.

After the game, UTM coach Amy Draper addressed her team’s weaknesses.

“I’m not sure if it’s youth or not. It’s not that we’re not capable, we just can’t find out in crunch time how to actually get it done and finish the game.” Draper also expressed a belief that her team will learn from each loss and improve. “We hope it’s the result of being in those positions, and the more you’re in those positions you do find out how to close games.”

The Skyhawks’ chance for a weekend split came on Saturday as they faced the Lady Panthers of EIU, but they still struggled to finish games.

UTM jumped out to an early 3-0 lead and built it to 7-3, forcing two early EIU timeouts. The Lady Panthers bounced back to tie the score at 7-7, but consecutive kills by freshman Natalee Staggs put the Skyhawks on top once again.

Once the Lady Panthers reclaimed the lead at 12-11, they were helped by UTM errors and extended their lead to 17-12. A late EIU run put the game away with the score 25-15. The Skyhawks ultimately fell to EIU, 30-23. They were out hit in the game, .452 to .086.

Game two was under the control of the Skyhawks until they faltered late, allowing EIU to win, 31-29.

The Skyhawks and Lady Panthers traded points and leads early before UTM took over, building a six point advantage at 20-14.

The Lady Panthers rallied to tie the game at 21. A kill by sophomore Sarah Jett broke a tie and put the Skyhawks on top, 23-22.

The team tacked two more points onto the lead but it proved to be short-lived. The Lady Panthers cut the lead to 27-26 and used Skyhawk errors down the stretch to win, 31-29.

The Skyhawks held a 20-17 advantage in kills for the game, but also committed eight errors. The Lady Panthers committed only five errors.

A Sarah Jett kill and Morgan Kilpatrick service ace lifted the Skyhawks to a 3-0 lead in game three.

Then the Lady Panthers rallied to go ahead, 7-4. After falling behind by as many as five points, the Skyhawks went on a run to take the lead on a service ace by Staggs, 13-12.

EIU jumped back on top, but once again the Skyhawks would not go away easily. Another kill by Jett brought them to within a point, 20-19, and a service ace by freshman Megan Hitt gave them the lead, 23-22.

In the end, the Lady Panthers were too powerful as they came out on top, 30-28, to complete the sweep.

“Every time we step on the floor we’re doing a little better ... experience is really hurting us right now. This team is good enough to be winning. We’re improving on the scoreboard until about point 28, but we can’t get over the mental part of closing games,” said Draper.

The losses dropped UTM’s record to 2-16 overall, 0-2 in the OVC. The team will travel to Nashville for a non-conference match against Belmont on Tuesday before returning home for weekend matches against OVC rivals Tennessee State and Austin Peay.