Laci Neece, of Truman State, cut second-seeded Rockhurst's third-set lead to 22-19 with a kill Thursday, but the Hawks scored the last three points to sweep the Bulldogs out of the conference volleyball tournament.
Riley Hays, of Rockhurst, answered with a kill, and two Truman State attack errors finished the 25-19, 25-22, 25-19 Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament quarterfinal at Williamsville High School Fieldhouse in Williamsville, Illinois.
Seventh-seeded Truman State fell to 14-13 overall. The Bulldogs went 8-5 in the GLVC.
Neece led Truman State with 12 kills. Tori Creason, of Truman State, had 39 assists and the team's only two aces, and Addy Janssen, of Truman State, had 17 digs.
Jessie Julius, of Truman State, added nine kills and eight digs. Hannah Hosty, of Truman State, had eight kills and three blocks.
Alyssa McDonald, of Rockhurst, led the Hawks with 10 kills. Delaney Hope, of Rockhurst, had seven kills, five blocks, and a .357 hitting percentage. Victoria Gray and Avery DeLong, both of Rockhurst, and Hays each added eight kills. Molly Trachta, of Rockhurst, had 20 assists and 12 digs.
Rockhurst hit .327 with 47 kills, eight aces, and 10 blocks. Truman State hit .230 with 42 kills, two aces, and five blocks.
The second set was the closest. Truman State tied it 13-13, then Rockhurst scored the next four points. The Bulldogs later cut a 24-19 deficit to 24-22 on a Hosty kill, a Creason ace, and a Neece kill before McDonald's kill ended the set.
Rockhurst opened the third set on a 5-0 run and led 18-9. Truman State scored six of the next seven points to get within 19-15.
Truman State had beaten Rockhurst 3-1 on Oct. 10 at Pershing Arena in Kirksville, Missouri. Creason, Julius, and Elise Gibson, of Truman State, were the Bulldogs' only seniors this season. Gibson played in the third set and had two kills.
Rockhurst (22-7) beat third-seeded Missouri-St. Louis 3-2 on Friday and plays top-seeded Indianapolis at noon Saturday for the GLVC Tournament championship in Williamsville.
Final tally: Rockhurst 3, Truman State 0.