Brownwood, Texas - Sophomore outside hitter, Kailey Doering registered a season high 14 kills and freshmen Jordan Livingston collected a career high 33 digs as the Howard Payne University volleyball team defeated Sul Ross State University 3-1 on Tuesday evening. 

The contest proved to be the perfect test for a road weary and tired Lady Jacket squad who had just returned home from their Atlanta road trip two days earlier. Howard Payne (3-6, 1-0 ASC) competed in four games during the two-day tournament and returned home in time to host the Lobo's for their American Southwest Conference opener on little rest. 

However, the Lady Jackets didn't show any signs of fatigue and came out focused and energized to run away with the 3-1 win (25-17, 25-8, 21-25 and 25-17) in four sets. Cheyanne Lovelady used some finesse at the net to register a season high seven kills in the victory, matching her previous career-high in the process. Jordan Rogers also matched a career-high with five blocks and Howard Payne rolled to their first conference victory of 2017.

The Lady Jackets opened up the contest on a 10-3 run before Sul Ross State (2-7, 0-1 ASC) managed to claw their way back into the game. Howard Payne would take the set 25-17 while never letting the Lobo's within five points of the lead. The second set was dominated by the Lady Jackets as they jumped out to a 6-0 lead and would end up gaining a 15 point advantage before cruising to the 25-8 result. 

The Lobo's rallied during the third set and exchanged leads with Howard Payne 17 times before wrestling away a 21-25 result to force the game into a fourth set. A late scoring run was what helped to put Sul Ross over the top as they scored the sets final five points. They carried that momentum into the fourth set, which saw several more lead changes while the Lobo's attempted to battle back and take the game.

The Lady Jackets used a seven point scoring run, fueled in large part by good defense and mental focus, to pull away with the win in the final serve. The Lobo's did attempt another comeback but the Howard Payne defense locked down and helped seal the 25-17 result to capture the game in four sets. 

Macy Maniscalo tallied 12 digs and five kills while Zhartaezia Bradley added seven kills to help lead the Lady Jackets to victory. Ashley Moore had five blocks and the Howard Payne servers collected six service aces while holding the Lobo's scoreless in the category.

The Lady Jackets will next host the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor at the Brownwood Coliseum on Friday, September 15th at 5:00 p.m. All tickets are free and the Coliseum will be open to the public at 4:25 p.m. If you can't make it out to the squad in person, follow live video and stats at HPUSports.com and stay tuned to social media for in game updates, interactive content and more. @HPUvball on Twitter and @HPUSports on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube.