EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Despite double-digit kills from freshman Kelsey Augustine and senior Sydney Winslow, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville volleyball dropped a 25-20, 25-17, 25-19 match to Illinois State Tuesday at the Vadalabene Center.

The Cougars recorded more kills than the visiting Redbirds by a 38-37 margin. The difference came in SIUE's errors, where the Cougars finished with 22 to Illinois State's 11.

For SIUE Head Coach Todd Gober, it was all about the lack of momentum.

"Mental preparation was a big part of this game. We could not get any momentum. Every time we started to make some plays and get some momentum, we missed serves or missed a free ball pass," said Gober.

SIUE, now 3-4 overall, had its two-match win streak snapped as it hit .134 as a team. Illinois State, meanwhile, finished with a .252 hitting percentage. Mallory Leggett led the Redbird attack with 10 kills.

"I felt we were starting to get a swagger back a little bit and confidence was building, but tonight we could never get it going. It seemed like we were fighting ourselves more than we were fighting the other team," said Gober.

Illinois State, 6-2, garnered six blocks, including four from Kristin Stauter. Jenny Menedez led the ISU defense with a match-high 21 digs.

"We didn't show what we are capable of. We are so much better than what we showed tonight," Gober added.

SIUE is now idle for eight days before it travels to Evansville for a 7 p.m. match next Wednesday in Evansville, Ind.

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