SEARCY, Ark., – In a match that featured all three sets being decided by two points, North Alabama found itself on the short end each time against West Florida in Saturday’s semi-final round of the Gulf South Conference Tournament in Searcy, Ark. The Argonauts advanced to the championship match with a 25-23, 27-25, 26-24 victory at Rhodes Field House on the campus of Harding University.

The match had 37 ties and 13 lead changes, but West Florida (21-12) made the plays at crucial times down the stretch of each frame. With the loss, UNA falls to 20-14 on the season and must wait to see if it gets a bid to next week’s regional round of the NCAA Tournament. The Lions entered the GSC tourney ranked seventh in the regional rankings.

Against West Florida, Alison Jacobs recorded her fourth triple-double of the season with 11 kills, 21 assists and 12 digs. Sarah Roberts also had 11 kills and recorded a .286 hitting percentage. Lauren Greenhill posted a team-best 20 digs while Brigid O’Brien added 16 and Shae Watkins had 11 on the day.

In the first set, the Lions led 16-11 before UWF fought back to take its first lead at 20-19. The Argonauts stretched their lead to 23-20 before three straight points by UNA tied the set at 23-23. After a timeout, West Florida got consecutive kills by Patricia Gandolfo and Chelsea Wilhoite to claim the win.

Roberts had six kills in the opening frame and hit .500 while Greenhill had eight digs.