The University of Texas of the Permian Basin volleyball came out on the short end in a tightly contested 3-1 loss Saturday afternoon against Dallas Baptist in Dallas, Texas.

UTPB had the upper hand at points in the opening set, leading 9-4 early on in the first and maintaining the lead throughout the set to 20-15. The Falcons were able to survive a five-point run by the Patriots that tied the set at 20-20 by scoring three of the next four to lead 23-21, but Dallas Baptist came out of a time out to score the next four points and take the first 25-23.

UTPB responded in the second, opening up the set with four kills from four different players and an ace by Keeley Brogdon to claim a 7-0 lead. That gap helped the Falcons keep the Patriots from getting closer than three points throughout the rest of the second, and when DBU closed the score to 18-15, UTPB scored six of the next seven points to lead 24-16 in an eventual 25-18 win.

But neither of the final two sets went UTPB's direction. A slow start to begin the third left the Falcons in a 5-1 hole that they were unable to dig out of over the remainder of the 25-16 loss.

UTPB used a pair of four point runs early in the fourth to hold an 8-2 advantage, but the Patriots followed up with seven straight points of their own to take the lead back at 9-8. UTPB tied the score at six different points before kills by Morgann Davis and Ryley Carman helped give the Falcons a 20-18 lead. DBU responded by tying the match at 21-21 and later at 22-22, and scored three of the final four points of the match to claim the victory with a 25-23 fourth set win.

Melissa Lusk led the Falcons with 13 kills on the afternoon as Davis and Carman chipped in 10 each. Ariel Fralick tallied 24 assists on the day and Taylor Harmon paced UTPB with 29 total digs.

The Falcons return home Thursday night for their lone match of the coming week, playing host to Lubbock Christian at 7 p.m.