In the final road test of the 2025 regular season, the Bears put up a fight against Northeast, Wednesday, but couldn't quite get the consistency they needed, falling 24-26, 21-25, 15-25.
 
"We tried to play hard but we couldn't get it going," Southwest head coach Chris Laird said.
 
The Bears (7-19, 4-11 MACCC) became locked in a battle with the host Tigers early on and even though they threatened late, they came up just short in the first set.
 
Another valiant effort in the second frame unfortunately wasn't enough as Northeast fended off the Bears to take a 2-0 lead.
 
The Bears kept fighting in the third set but the momentum stayed on the home side unfortunately as Southwest was unable to match the Tigers' intensity.
 
Southwest returns home Monday to host Pearl River at 6 p.m. in the regular season finale.