POPLARVILLE - A strong performance in the opening set helped Pearl River take down Northwest in a crucial Region 23 match, and the Lady Rangers followed up with a shutout loss against Lurleen B. Wallace on Wednesday.

For Northwest, the losses snapped a six-match winning streak and dropped the Lady Rangers to 6-10 on the season. NWCC also dropped to 2-1 against region competition.

Northwest will return to action on Friday in a doubleheader at Henderson State and Dallas College-Richland. The Lady Rangers will take on host HSU at 2 P.M., followed by a 4 P.M. start time against the ThunderDucks.


Pearl River 3, Northwest 1
(Set scores: 25-11, 25-21, 24-26, 25-15)

Pearl River jumped out to a big lead early in the first set and cruised to a stunning 3-1 upset of Northwest.

Northwest responded from an unusual 25-11 loss in the opening set and remained in striking distance throughout the second set. However, the Lady Wildcats never lost the momentum, claiming the second set and a 2-0 match lead.

With their backs to the wall, the Lady Rangers outlasted Pearl River in the third set and kept the match going in a 2-1 deficit. However, the Lady Wildcats rebounded with the momentum in the fourth set, earning the clinching 25-15 decision.


Lurleen B. Wallace 3, Northwest 0
(Set scores: 25-22, 25-14, 25-19)

After falling short in a closely-contested opening set, Northwest fell behind early in the second, as Lurleen B. Wallace claimed a 25-14 decision.

Leading the match 2-0, the Lady Saints held off the Lady Rangers in the third set, 25-19, delivering a shutout victory against Northwest.