ST. CHARLES, Mo. --- Washburn volleyball was dealt a tough loss on Saturday as it fell to Lindenwood, 3-2, at Hyland Arena in St. Charles, Mo. With the result, the Ichabods dropped to 16-12 overall and slipped to 7-9 in the MIAA.

Washburn edged out the Lions (17-12, 8-7 MIAA) in hitting, .126 to .124 as it tallied 58 kills on 198 swings with 33 errors. Lindenwood registered two fewer kills with 30 errors on 209 attack attempts. 

Genna Berg paced the Washburn attack with a match-best 16 kills as Olivia Powell and Makayla Maxwell followed with 15 and 13 respectively. Maxwell also added five blocks and a service. Faith Rottinghaus collected 25 digs while Powell finished with 22. Allison Sadler distributed a team-high 36 assists.

Trailing the match 2-1, Washburn quickly fell behind in the fourth as the Lions sprinted out to an 8-2 lead. The sluggish Ichabods however soon found their form as they rattled off eight unanswered taking a 10-8 lead. The run was sparked by Carley Swan and maintained with three kills from Maxwell. Lindenwood then used a 6-3 run to nudge past at 14-13. 

Tied at 17 after a furious exchange, Maxwell pushed Washburn out front as back-to-back kills made it 19-17. Lindenwood rallied late into the fourth to cut the margin to one, 24-23, but the effort fell short as Maxwell buried her sixth kill of the frame to help the Ichabods force a fifth set. 

In the fifth, possession see-sawed early as neither side was able to string together consecutive points. With Washburn holding a narrow 5-4 lead, the Lions deviated from the trend and tallied three unanswered to claim a 7-5 advantage before swapping ends with an 8-6 lead. The Ichabods stayed close as they forced ties at 8-8 and 9-9 but were held off as Lindenwood registered six of the final eight points to secure the fifth set, 15-11, and win the match.

Washburn won the opener 25-20 as it used an 8-0 run midway through to overcome a 12-7 deficit. Lindenwood leveled the match with the same score in the second before taking the third set, 25-22.

Neither offense was efficient in the first set as Washburn hit .073 while Lindenwood hit -.022. The Ichabods' most proficient set was in the second as they recorded 14 kills on 34 attempts with four errors for a match-best .294 hitting percentage, before posting a sub-.100 mark in the third.

The Ichabods return to action Thursday, Nov. 9 as they travel to Pittburg State before closing the regular-season on Friday, Nov. 10 at Central Oklahoma.