PINE BLUFF, Ark. | The Grambling State University volleyball team played a winner-take-all match to decide the sixth seed in next week's Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Tournament as the Lady Tigers came away with a 3-1 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Thursday night at the Convention Center.
 
Both teams entered Thursday match with a lot at stake. Both needed a win to secure a spot in the SWAC Tournament. A loss would eliminate either GSU or UAPB from advancing to the tournament. With the win, Grambling State (11-23 overall, 7-11 SWAC) reaches the tournament as the No. 6 seed and will face No. 3 seed Southern.  Arkansas-Pine Bluff concludes its season with an 8-21 overall mark and a 6-12 conference record.
 
Grambling State took the opening set, 25-21, but Arkansas-Pine Bluff tied the match at 1 with a 25-23 second-set win. The Lady Tigers got a 25-18 third-set win and captured the match in the fourth set, 25-15.
 
Chasity Nicks paced three Lady Tiger players in double-digit kills, as she finished with 13 kills on 43 total attacks, with four errors, for a .209 hitting percentage. Talicia Lang added 12 kills and hit .267, while Kevreion Ward added a double-double of 11 digs and 10 kills. L'Muriell Thrower registered a double-double of 21 assists and 13 digs, while Sheila Borders dished out 20 assists and 10 digs. Erineka Mollere led the defense with 21 digs.
 
Kendalle Howard led Arkansas-Pine Bluff with a double-double of 20 digs and a team-high 16 kills. Haley Gomez added 20 digs and 13 kills, while Britney Sahlmann handed out a match-high 38 assists, along with 18 digs. Cheyenne Odgers and Kaitlyn Hapke recorded 16 and 11 digs, respectively.
 
Inside the Numbers
> Grambling State recorded a .204 hitting percentage in the four sets (52 kills, 18 errors, 167 total attacks)
> Arkansas-Pine Bluff tallied 49 kills, 29 errors and 182 total attacks (.110 hitting percentage)
> The Lady Tigers finished with 81 digs, 47 assists, 13.0 total team blocks and seven service aces
> The Lady Golden Lions registered 90 digs, 44 assists, 4.0 total team blocks and four service aces
 
Up Next
Grambling State opens the 2018 SWAC Women's Volleyball Tournament as the No. 6 seed and will face the No. 3 seed, Southern, on Friday, Nov. 16 at Mississippi Valley State University in Itta Bena, Miss.
 
Follow Grambling State Athletics
For complete coverage of Grambling State athletics, please follow the Tigers on social media at @GSU_Tigers (Twitter), /gramblingstateathletics (Facebook), @gramblingathletics01 (Instagram) or visit the official home of Grambling State Athletics at gsutigers.com.