ALBANY, Ga. ^__ The Tuskegee Golden Tigers faced a tough opening day at the SIAC Crossover, dropping matches in straight sets to Edward Waters and Clark Atlanta on Friday.
 
Edward Waters 3, Tuskegee 0
In the first match of the day, Tuskegee fell to Edward Waters (28-26, 25-20, 25-14). Despite strong defensive efforts, the Golden Tigers were unable to contain the Edward Waters attack.
 
Tuskegee's offense struggled to find rhythm throughout the match, with standout efforts from Moriah Seay, who led the team with ten kills, and defensive specialist Ziniah Hardy, who was a key defensive player with 13 digs.
 
The Golden Tigers put up a fight in the first set but were ultimately outpaced by Edward Waters' efficient hitting and serving. Tuskegee faced a difficult second set, unable to generate enough offense to keep pace.
 
In the third set, Tuskegee showed resilience but could not overcome Edward Waters' momentum, leading to the 3-0 loss.
 
Seay added six digs to her double figure kill mark, while Kiana Wilcher and Mikea Allen both finished with 11 digs, with Allen recording a double-double with 14 assists.
 
Clark Atlanta 3, Tuskegee 0
Later in the day, Tuskegee took on Clark Atlanta but was unable to turn the tide, falling again in straight sets (25-23, 25-23, 25-22). The match was a hard-fought battle, with Tuskegee coming close to securing sets but just falling short in key moments.
 
The Golden Tigers displayed improved play in this matchup, with contributions from Taylor Coleman and Sian Sprinkle on offense, and Ma'Kayla Jones continuing her strong play at the net.
 
Edwards and Wilcher anchored the defense with their solid back-row performance, while Wilcher also added service aces to keep Tuskegee competitive.
 
TU had 27 kills in the match at a .150 percent clip compared to 35 kills at a .216 rate for Clark Atlanta. Jones led the Golden Tigers with 11 points to go along with a pair of digs, blocks, and service aces.
 
Meanwhile, Sprinkle added seven kills, while Seay added four, seven digs, one assist, and a service ace. Allen led the team for the second match of the day in assists with 13 to go with five digs in the loss.
 
Next Up
Tuskegee will return to play on Saturday as they compete in its final two matches of the SIAC Crossover. The Golden Tigers will face Benedict at 10:30 a.m. and Savannah State at 3:30 p.m. ET., both at the HPER Complex.
 
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