Following a casual 3-0 win against Midwestern State, the West Texas A&M Lady Buffs volleyball team fell short on Friday against the sixth-ranked team in the nation, the Nebraska-Kearney Lopers.

The Lady Buffs snagged a nail biter 27-25 win to start off. They continued to fight through the next three sets with bursts of energy and killer attacks but could not find the win column again.

“I’m proud because of the fight, but it sucks because they were beatable,” said freshman libero Chandler Vogel, who ended the night with 11 digs. “Altogether though, we’re all seeing and doing things we wouldn’t have done in the first game.”

Head coach Jason Skoch said the team played an impressive game considering the difference in ranking and the young bench.

“We’re not going to steer too much course, because if you think about it, if that’s sixth in the nation and we’re that young and really not as athletic as them right now, that really tells me we’re heading in the right direction,” Skoch said.

Overall, the team and Skoch view the loss as a learning experience and not as something that defines them.

“What we’re trying to do now is stay the course but sprinkle in a few nuances that this team exposed,” Skoch said. “The only thing we’ll probably do a little differently is work on being clutch at the end. We’re going to highlight it more and make it gregariously a bigger part of practice.”

The Lady Buffs will face the Falcons from University of Texas of the Permian Basin at 7 p.m. Sept. 19 in The Box.