COLUMBIA, Mo. – Missouri State's volleyball team finished day one of the Mizzou Invitational with a pair of 3-0 losses Friday, falling to Northwestern State in the morning match and host Missouri in the nightcap inside the Hearnes Center.

The Bears (1-4) conclude the tournament Saturday at 10 a.m. against Abilene Christian (1-3).

Northwestern State Recap (NSU won 25-9, 25-17, 26-24)
The Bears got off to a slow start with more attack errors that kills in the first set, and NSU (3-2) used a 6-0 run for a 16-9 advantage to take control of the second. Both clubs had 11 kills in the second set, but the Demons distanced themselves with three aces and three blocks.

Missouri State didn't trail the third set until 25-24, when Northwestern State closed on a 3-0 run to complete the sweep. The Bears led 14-8, NSU tied at 14, and Manuela Ibarguen hit three straight kills to cap a 5-0 run at 19-14. NSU pulled even at 23, an attack error gave the Bears set point at 24-23, but a kill, ace and block by Northwestern State squashed MSU's chances for a comeback.

Ibarguen tallied a match-high 13 kills, reaching double figures for the fourth consecutive match. NSU out-hit the Bears .238-.110 and served up 13 aces with only one error.

Freshmen Lucca Dunser and Jaycee Fixsen each collected three kills, the first of their careers.

Missouri Recap (MU won 25-15, 25-17, 25-17)
Missouri used an efficient offensive effort to take down the Bears in three sets in the first regular season meeting between the two programs since 1998.

The Tigers (3-2) took control of the opening set with a 10-1 run to lead 17-7 and hit .448 with a 16-7 kill advantage, though the Bears did serve up four aces.

A 6-4 MSU lead in the second set was met by a 5-0 run by the Tigers, after which the Bears were never closer than two points. The third set followed a similar pattern, with MU running to a 9-4 lead and holding off Missouri State after the Bears twice got within a point. The second of those rallies was met with a 4-0 MU run that put the Tigers up 16-11.

Ibarguen led MSU with seven kills, while Deja Bickers added five without an error to hit .385. Missouri State hit .256 in the third set and .156 for the match, while the Tigers hit .383 in the contest.