HUNTSVILLE - The Sam Houston State volleyball team closed out the SHSU Invitational with a pair of close losses to Louisiana Tech and Oral Roberts Saturday afternoon at Johnson Coliseum.

The Bearkats (1-2) fell to the Techsters (3-0) in five hard-fought sets and dropped the nightcap in four to the Golden Eagles (2-1).

Sam Houston State lost to Oral Roberts in the first two sets but jumped out to a 19-12 lead in the third after back-to-back aces by junior Madilyn Miles. The Bearkats then held off a late rally by the Golden Eagles and sealed the third-set victory 25-20 thanks to an ace by senior Ashleigh Traylor.

Sam Houston State fell behind 15-11 in the fourth set but battled back to take a 20-16. Oral Roberts outscored the Kats 9-3 the rest of the way to capture the victory 25-23.

Junior Ashley Lewis led Sam Houston State with 21 kills and freshman Samantha Rodgers and sophomore Breanne Chausse finished with 13 and 10, respectively. Sophomore Kaira Hunnicutt had four blocks, and freshman Morgan Janda had 32 assists.

In the first game against the Techsters, the Bearkats rallied from a loss in the first set (26-24) to tie the match with a 25-21 win in the second. Sam Houston had a 17-11 lead in the third set, but Louisiana Tech came back to take it 27-25.

The Bearkats scratched out the fourth set 26-24 and had a 7-4 lead in the fifth before the Techsters once again got hot down the stretch to take the match with a 15-11 win.

Chausse led the Kats with 20 kills, and Rodgers finished with 17. Hunnicutt had four blocks, while Miles (30) and Janda (25) each had double-digit assists.

Sam Houston State will face Weber State at the BYU Doterra Classic Thursday in Provo, Utah.