The SIUC volleyball team has put its plans of making the Missouri Valley Conference tournament in jeopardy with two weekend losses.

A 15-13, 14-16, 16-14, 15-8 setback at Wichita State University Friday, combined with Saturday night’s defeat to Southwest Missouri State University 15-9, 15-11, 9-15, 8-15, 16-14, leaves the Salukis with a record of 9-12 overall and 6-7 in the MVC.

SIUC, which has lost three in a row, must finish in at least sixth place to earn a berth in the MVC tournament. Currently, the Salukis are in sixth, but stand only one game ahead of SMSU with five conference games remaining.

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SIUC coach Sonya Locke said that although the team has lost three straight matches, the sixth seed in the tournament is theirs to lose.

One of our losses was to the top team in the conference, and the other two were on the road, Locke said. We’re just in a situation where we have to control our own destiny and win the matches we have to win.

The Salukis received a balanced effort from the trio of junior outside hitters Marlo Moreland and Lindsay Fisher and junior middle blocker Laura Pier against Wichita State. Moreland led the attack with 20 kills and 17 digs in the match. Fisher filled in for the injured junior middle blocker Monique Galvin and recorded 19 kills, while Pier added 18.

But inconsistent play from the Salukis allowed the Shockers to take the match. SIUC rallied from a seven-point deficit in game one to take a 13-12 lead, only to watch WSU score the final three points.

In game two, the Salukis fell behind 14-8, but Fisher was able to serve up seven consecutive points to steal the game.

The up-and-down play continued for the Salukis in game three. Ahead 14-10, SIUC was unable to close out the game as the Shockers scored the final six points.

Fisher said late-game collapses have been a common occurrence throughout the season.

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There have been games within our reach, but we couldn’t finish out the game, she said.

SIUC never recovered from the game three setback, falling behind 10-3 early in game four.

While inconsistent play hampered the Salukis against Wichita State, the play of Joleen Meservy and Michelle Witzke carried Southwest Missouri State to victory.

Even though the Salukis recorded a .335 hitting percentage, compared to SMSU’s .255, the MVC’s top two leaders in kills per game made up the difference. Meservy (35) and Witzke (27) accounted for 62 kills in the match.

Locke said there was nothing the Salukis could do to stop the talented duo.

They’re good hitters, Locke said. They were just on, and when you’re on like that, there is not a lot you can do to stop them.

The Bears opened by winning the first two games of the match, but SIUC fought back to win the next two.

In the fifth and deciding game of the match, the Salukis held a 11-9 advantage. But the Bears were too much down the stretch, scoring seven of the game’s final 10 points.

The Salukis were paced by Moreland’s 22 kills, and Pier added 17 in the loss.

Fisher said the team did gain some momentum by coming from 2-0 deficit against the Bears. She said the sixth spot in the conference tournament is still within reach because the Salukis have earned victories against their final five conference opponents this season.

Even though no one had an outstanding performance, we still found a way to make it go five games, Fisher said. Now every game is important to clinch that last place in the tournament. We’re not looking past anybody, but the rest of the schedule looks pretty good.

The Salukis travel to Evansville, Ind., this weekend to compete in the Evansville Invitational.