PITTSBURG, Kan.—Rivalry games can be intense and Tuesday night's Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association match-up between Missouri Southern State University and Pittsburg State University lived up to its bill early. As the dust settled on Whetzel Court inside John Lance Arena, the Gorillas prevailed in a hard fought battle by set scores of 25-23, 23-25, 25-20 and 25-17.

The game's first two sets were neck and neck as neither team earned an upper hand. The Lions had 13 kills while the Gorillas had 17 and only three errors. Despite losing the second set, Head Coach Jen Gomez was able to keep her squad motivated as they capitalized on 11 Lin errors and took the second set. Momentum was fully on Pitt State's side as they took an early lead and the Lions had a -.061 attack average.

In the contest PSU had 61 kills with Meg Auten leading the way with 17 while Erika Ivkov posting 11 and Claire Sandvig posting 10. Laura Willoughby led the way for the Gorillas in assists with 28 while Addison Weybrew and Marissa Bates each had 19 digs to pace the team.

The Gorillas will continue the MIAA slate of their schedule when they hit the road on Friday. The Gorillas will travel to Edmond, Oklahoma to take on Central Oklahoma for a 6 p.m. tilt.