HOUSTON — Jaida Dowd picked up where she left off earlier Saturday, recording a match-high 13 kills to lead Xavier University of Louisiana to a 25-21, 25-15, 25-19 victory against St. Thomas (Texas) in the finale of the UST Volleyball Classic.
     The Gold Nuggets (20-5) reached 20 victories for the third consecutive season. They won 2-of-3 matches at this tournament.
     Dowd had seven kills and hit .545 in the third set, and she ended the match with a kill. In three tournament matches, Dowd had 36 kills and hit a team-leading .320. She produced a career-high 16 kills in XULA's first Saturday match, a five-set loss to Huston-Tillotson.
     Ema Causevic had 10 kills, four aces, nine digs and a block for XULA. Kayla Black had nine kills, 12 digs, an ace and a block. Jennifer Torres had 15 digs — her season-high sixth consecutive match in double figures — Zora Barnett had three blocks, and Taylor McGee produced two aces and eight digs.
     Eva Le Guillou had 27 assists for XULA, and Tiffany Phillips had 13.
     Alaina Lanik had eight kills for St. Thomas (6-14), a longtime NAIA member now transitioning to NCAA Division III, and Mariah Regan had 15 digs.
     XULA led 20-19 in the first set, then Black ended it by scoring four of the Gold Nuggets' final five points: three kills and an ace. XULA closed the secon set with an 8-1 run and erased a 10-9 third-set deficit with an 11-4 run.
     The Gold Nuggets outhit the Celts .239 to .116 and had advantages of 45-30 in kills, 44-28 in assists, 8-2 in aces, 56-50 in digs and 6-1 in blocks.
     XULA will celebrate Breast Cancer Awareness Day next Saturday at the Convocation Center during a Gulf Coast Athletic Conference group play event. Fans are encouraged to wear pink. XULA and SUNO will play first at 11 a.m., followed by Tougaloo vs. Dillard at 1 p.m., SUNO vs. Dillard at 4 p.m. and XULA vs. Tougaloo at 6 p.m.