Score: Saint Louis 3, VCU 2 (24-26, 25-19, 22-25, 25-17, 15-13)
Location: St. Louis, Mo. (Chaifetz, Pavilion)
Records: VCU 11-4, Saint Louis 8-8
 
The short story: Sophomore outside hitter Qairo Bentley blasted a team-high 17 kills, but it wasn't enough for VCU to hold off comeback-minded Saint Louis Saturday.
 
OPENING VOLLEY

• Bentley also provided 11 digs for VCU She was one of four players to record double-digits in that category
• Senior outside hitter Paula Neciporuka added 12 kills, 17 digs and four aces to the VCU cause
• Freshman middle blocker Jasmine Knight also provided 11 kills and hit .385 for the Black and Gold
• Maya Taylor led all players with 25 kills for Saint Louis

THE DIFFERENCE

• The Billikens outhit the Rams .264 to .185 and owned a 7-3 advantage in blocks. The Billikens also served up 11 aces
• VCU led 2-1, but Saint Louis used a 6-0 burst, led by a pair of Emily Henken kills, midway through the fourth set to take an 18-13 lead on the way to a 25-17 win
• The Rams hit .048 in the fifth set tiebreaker. VCU led 9-8 in the final frame, but the Billikens used a crucial 5-0 run to take command at 13-9

NOTABLE

• Saturday's match was scheduled as a non-conference contest, and will not count against either school's A-10 record
• Prior to Saturday, VCU had defeated the Billikens in seven straight meetings
• Setters Corinna Jones and Dani Jo David combined for 39 assists and 19 digs for the Black and Gold 

NEXT UP
VCU will close out its regular season on Saturday, March 27 with Davidson at 1 p.m. at the Siegel Center.