SEARCY, Ark. – The University of Arkansas at Monticello volleyball team was defeated 3-1 by Harding at Rhodes Field House Thursday, but the team remains in second place in the Gulf South Conference-West Division with only two league matches left on the schedule.
 
Final game scores were 25-23, 21-25, 18-25 and 19-25. With the loss, UAM drops to 13-16 overall and 7-3 in the GSC-West, while Harding improves to 25-6 overall and 9-1 in the GSC-West, strengthening its first place standing in the division.
 
The strong hitting of Harding’s Manuela Nesheva proved to be too much for the Blossom defense to handle. Nesheva recorded a match-high 25 kills on 49 attempts with only four errors for a final .429 hitting percentage.
 
The Blossoms were led by freshman Amanda Dills and seniors Sara Kindred and Mallory Storm, all three recording nine kills in the loss. Of the three, Kindred had the best percentage, with 23 attempts and only four errors for a final .217 mark.
 
The Blossoms step out of GSC competition this weekend for a three-game home stand, starting Saturday at 11 a.m. against Philander Smith, immediately followed by a 1 p.m. match against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.