MISHAWAKA, Ind. – The Indiana Tech volleyball team dropped a heartbreaker in its second match of the day at the Bethel Pilot Invitational on Friday, losing to Warner University (Fla.) in five sets (25-20, 26-24, 20-25, 26-28, 16-18) and falling to 0-2 on the day and year.
 
Tech got off to a slow start in the first set, falling behind 10-4 early on behind four straight Warner points. The Warriors would claw back into the set, rattling off three straight, including an ace by senior Katelyn St. Martin, to make the score 14-11. After falling to 19-13, head coach Kourtney Wilson called a timeout to calm her young squad down. Tech then rallied off four straight points behind Briyanna Axtell and St. Martin kills.
 
After a Royals kill, the Warriors marched off eight straight points to close out the first set, with St. Martin claiming three kills and Aubree Eggers finishing it off with one.
 
In the second set, the Warriors again found themselves trailing early as they were down 6-2 through the first eight serves. A three point rally, a Royals service error brought Tech even at seven all.
 
Down 24-19, the Warriors looked liked they would heading into the third set tied, but Tech dug deep and rallied off six straight points to go up 2-0. St. Martin ripped of four kills during the stretch, including the set-winner.
 
The third set saw Coach Wilson's squad get out to a 7-6 lead behind kills from Cassie Sarabia, Gabby Staggs and Jazmin Alexander. The Royals would score the next two points however, and never relinquish the lead.
 
After going down 17-12 in the fourth set, the Warriors rallied off six straight points behind St. Martin kills and a couple of Royals attack errors to take a one point lead. Tech once again found themselves down set point, but rallied to take 25-24 lead. It would prove not enough however, as the Royals came back with three straight points to send the match to a decisive fifth set.
 
Four straight points to start off the final set put the Warriors in prime position to pull out a win, but Ashford rallied off five straight points to take the lead. After kills from Sarabia and Alexander put Tech back up top by two, the lead swung back and forth before the match got tied at 14. A timeout by Wilson led to a kill from Alexander and a 15-14 lead. A service error by Taylor Kelso and an attack error by Briyanna Axtell gave the Royals room to complete the comeback.
 
The Warriors will have a quick turnaround as they take on Doane College (Neb.) and the host Pilots on Saturday to finish the invitational. Match times are set for 12 and 4 p.m., respectively. Live video will be available for the Bethel match at IndianaTechWarriors.com.