DILLON, MONT. –  A season-low hitting percentage meant the third straight loss for the Lewis-Clark State College women's volleyball team as it suffered a rare loss to Montana Western 25-23, 25-13, 22-25, 25-18 in a Sunday Frontier Conference contest.

The Warriors hit .077 for the match, which is only the second time the team has hit less than .200 this season. The previous low was .172 in a four-game setback to Biola.

LCSC had 41 kills in the match, but also 30 attack errors, which gave Montana Western the opportunity it needed to beat the Warriors for the first time in at least a decade. Dating back to 2006, LCSC had won 29 straight, including 24 by 3-0 sweeps.

"They have improved tremendously and we knew it was going to be a battle," LCSC coach LaToya Harris-Alexander said. "But I expected us to show up better than we did. We are in a slump."

LCSC entered the week ranked for the first time in the NAIA poll this season at No. 25, but lost all three matches it played since the poll came out. The Warriors are 6-7 overall and 2-2 in conference play, while Western is 8-8 overall and in a first-place tie with Carroll at 3-1.

"Our hitting and ball control just were not that consistent," Harris-Alexander said. "Not just for this match, but for the weekend."

Asked if this was a physical or mental issue the team is going through right now, Harris-Alexander didn't hesitate: "It's mental," she said.

In the opening game, the Warriors ran off six straight points for an 11-5 advantage. LC eventually led 20-18, but Western used a pair of kills and an attack error by LCSC to take its first lead at 21-20. LCSC regained the lead at 23-21, but as it was the case in Friday's loss to Rocky Mountain, the Warriors couldn't close out the game and Western scored the final four points for the win.

In the second game, Western took the early lead and held a 16-12 advantage after a kill by LCSC's Kennadie Clute. The Bulldogs then scored nine of the next 10 points to win going away. The Warriors gave up three service aces and also had three attack errors during the run.

"We need to work together," Harris-Alexander said. "We just have to play better and smarter. We have to be disciplined with our shot selection and defensive choices, and we need to stay mentally sharp."

After hitting in the negative numbers the first two games, the Warriors did respond in the third game. After the contest went back-and-forth early, LCSC was able to break a 10-10 tie with three straight points to take the lead for good. Stephanie Ovitz keyed the run with a pair of kills. LCSC later used six straight points for a 20-13 lead as Clute had a pair of kills. The Bulldogs attempted a rally but came up short.

In the fourth game, Western broke a 6-6 tie with four straight points to take the lead for good. LCSC cut the lead to three points on four occasions, the last at 18-15, but couldn't get over the hump.

Clute led LCSC with 11 kills and 17 digs, but also had 12 attack errors. Maya Williamson added nine kills and hit .643 for the match, while Ovitz added seven kills.

"Maya did outstanding," Harris-Alexander said. "That's two nights in a row that she produced great numbers. If we would have passed like we normally do, we could have used her a lot more in the front row. But she has improved tremendously this year."

Amber Hillestad had nine assists for LCSC, while Shaelyn Pierson added 16.

"It was a very rough weekend," Harris-Alexander said. "We have to make some changes or it's going to be a rough season. But I believe in my team and know we can get out of this."

The Warriors played their next three conference matches at home. On Friday, LCSC plays host to Great Falls at 7 p.m., and then meets Montana State-Northern on Saturday at 2 p.m. LCSC also hosts Rocky Mountain at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 8.