SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State ran its winning streak to four matches in convincing fashion Friday evening with a 25-23, 25-18, 25-10 sweep of visiting Louisiana Tech at Hammons Student Center.
 
The Bears (9-11, 4-5 Conference USA) hit .277 in the match and held the Bulldogs (7-16, 0-9) to a .124 efficiency, getting 11 kills from freshman Peyton McKee and 10 kills and six blocks from senior Lizanyela Lopez to lead the way.
 
The opening set was tied 10 times to 11-all when the Bears went on a 3-0 run to lead 14-11. McKee landed consecutive kills for a 21-16 advantage and MSU held off a late LA Tech charge for the 25-23 win.
 
MoState used a 4-0 run to lead 9-5 in the second period and kept the margin at 3-7 for the remainder of the period while limiting the visitors to eight total kills.
 
A 9-0 run put away the third set shortly after it began, with the Bears hitting .407 and pulled away to their most lopsided set victory of the season.
 
Rilynn Finley (7 kills), Lexi Weinberg (6) and Hannah Gardner (6) rounded out a balanced offense for MSU. Kya Johnson (14) and Brooke Eslinger (12) reached double figures in digs while also helping the Bears go a perfect 44-for-44 on service receptions.
 
The two-match series concludes at 1 p.m. Saturday.