MARYVILLE, Mo. -- The No. 14 Northwest Missouri Bearcats defended their home court on Saturday night as they swept Pittsburg State University in Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) action.

The Bearcats won with set scores of 25-13, 25-18 and 25-15. With the win the Bearcats improve to 17-5 overall and 10-4 in the conference. Meanwhile the Gorillas fall to 11-12 overall and 6-8 in the MIAA.

The Gorillas and Bearcats were tied at four early but a 14-1 run by Northwest Missouri put set one on the back burner early. The Gorillas battled but could not overcome early leads by the Bearcats in sets two and three.

Emily Regier led the Gorillas with 10 kills while Laura Willoughby had 14 assists.

The Gorillas will return to John Lance Arena this week for two matches starting Tuesday (Oct. 29) when they battle Newman University. Pitt State then will take on Missouri Western on Saturday (Nov. 2). Both matches start at 6 p.m.