October 8, 2014
UTA claims sweep of Texas State in Dig Pink Match
ARLINGTON, Texas - A thundering crowd of 1,251 for UT Arlington's Dig Pink Match helped propel the Mavericks to a three-set sweep of Texas State (27-25, 25-21, 25-15) on Wednesday night. The crowd helped set a new College Park Center volleyball record for attendance as the fans witnessed the seventh home sweep for UTA this season.
The win improves the Mavs record to 14-5 on the season and 4-3 in conference play while Texas State suffered its first conference loss as it sits 11-8 overall and 6-1 in the Sun Belt. The match marks just the second time this season that the Bobcats have been swept.
Briana Sharratt was the catalyst for the Mavericks offense as the sophomore MB recorded 10 kills and a hitting percentage of .833. Sharratt also made her mark defensively as the Aledo, Texas native recorded five blocks, helping UTA out block Texas State 9-2. Qiana Canete also did her part in the victory as the freshman recorded her 12th double-double of the season with 12 kills and ten digs.
As a team the Mavericks hit .307 while holding the Bobcats to a hitting percentage of .143. UTA also committed only 12 attack errors while Texas State notched 20.
The Mavericks will return to action on Friday when they travel to Mobile, Alabama to take on South Alabama with the match slated to begin at 6 p.m.
Bobcats Suffer First Conference Loss to UTA
ARLINGTON, Texas – Texas State suffered the team’s first Sun Belt Conference loss of the season at the hands of in-state rival UT Arlington Wednesday night. The Mavericks swept Texas State, 27-25, 25-21, 25-15 to make it just the second time this season the Bobcats were swept. With the loss, Texas State falls to 11-8 on the season and 6-1 in the SBC after the team’s best conference start since 2003. Now only UALR stands as the lone undefeated team in Sun Belt action.
The Texas State middle blockers stood out in the match with Lauren Kirch and Amanda Watkins combining for 24 kills with 12 apiece. The 12 kills from Watkins mark a career best as she finished with a .423 hitting percentage.
Ali Gonzales gave out 20 assists while Jordan Moore added 11. Libero Sierra Smith led the team in digs with 10, her 10th consecutive match with double-digit digs. Brenna Lyles finished with nine while Shelby Vas Matt added eight digs.
Kirch put down the first kill of the match to give Texas State a 1-0 lead early, but UT Arlington scored five consecutive points to flip the script and start out with a 5-1 lead in the first set. The Mavericks later used a 3-0 run to gain a lead as large as 22-16.
But then, down 23-18, the Bobcats used a 6-0 run of their own to go up 24-23 and claim set point. Both teams jostled back and forth from there, but with the opening frame tied, 25-25, UT Arlington put down a kill and benefitted from a Texas State error to win the first set, 27-25 and claim a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Mavericks started the second set in much the same way, scoring the first four points for a 4-0 lead. Vas Matt stopped the run with a kill to put the Bobcats on the board. Down 9-4 later in the set, Texas State used a 3-0 run to pull within two points of UTA, 9-7. Unfortunately, that would be as close as Texas State would get in the second set.
The Bobcats pulled within two points twice more in the frame at 17-15 and 20-18, but both times UT Arlington answered with points to pull away and took the second set, 25-21, for a 2-0 lead.
To start the third set, UTA used a 3-0 run and a 5-0 run to build a 10-3 lead after the Bobcats scored the first point of the frame. That lead proved to be insurmountable as UT Arlington went on to close out the match with a 25-15 victory in the third set for the sweep.
Texas State’s match against UT Arlington was the first of three matches for the Bobcats this week. They return home for the team’s next two matches, a 6 p.m. Friday match against Appalachian State and a 12 p.m. Sunday match against UL Monroe.
Baker Helps Jaguars Dig Out a 3-0 Victory at Troy
TROY, Ala. – Sophomore libero Abby Baker carded 29 digs and helped lead the University of South Alabama volleyball team to a 3-0 (27-25, 25-19, 25-17) Sun Belt Conference victory over Troy Wednesday evening at Trojan Arena.
"Our block really helped me a lot tonight," Baker said when asked to what she attributed her strong performance. "The set up a good block and I was able to get around them and was able to read the hitters better. (As a libero) you're supposed to get as many balls as you can. I just try take whatever I can out there and leave the kills up to the rest of the team.
"Tonight's win and our win against Georgia State on Saturday were both real confidence boosters for our team. Troy is a really good team and to get a win like we did tonight was a good confidence booster for us and will help prepare us for our next match."
The 29 digs by Baker were the most ever by a Jag in a three-set match, eclipsing the previous mark of 25 by Jenna Hassell set versus Florida International on Oct. 29, 2010. That tally also tied with Hassell for fifth-most by a Jag in a match during the Rally Era (2001-Present). Hassell had her 29 digs at Tulane on Sept. 17. 2011 in a five-set match.
"I thought our block did a really good job tonight of getting their hands on the ball," South Alabama head coach Amy Hendrichovsky said. "It made it for our defense to play. I think I was most impressed with our team tonight by them keeping their composure when they were pressed. They stayed relaxed and stuck to our plan."
As a team, South Alabama (9-8, 4-3 SBC) held a 66-42 advantage in that category.
The Jaguars will return home to host Texas-Arlington on Friday night and Georgia Southern on Saturday night. First serve for both of those matches is set for 6 p.m. at Jag Gym. The match versus the Trojans began a stretch of three matches in four nights for the Jags.
Hendrichovsky believes the straight-set win will be valuable to the Jags not only in the win column, but also from a rest standpoint.
"Winning in three sets tonight was very important for us," Hendrichovsky said. "Taking care of our bodies is very important at this point of the season and for us to take care of this match in three sets gives us a little more rest for our next match on Friday night."
Mechell Daniel paced the South Alabama offensive attack as the sophomore outside hitter had 15 kills, while also adding three total blocks – one solo and two assists. Jessica Lewis also finished the night in double figures in kills with 10, while Symone Stephenson just missed double digits with nine kills and posted a .438 hitting percentage.
Junior setter Emily Hundt recorded her sixth double-double of the season with her 23 assists and 11 digs.
The loss for Troy (9-11, 1-7 SBC) was its seventh-straight. Darby Griff led the Trojans with nine kills. Symone Shaw added eight kills and Marija Zelenovic finished with seven. Ali Dowdall had 18 digs for Troy in the loss.
SET ONE: SOUTH ALABAMA 27, TROY 25
Behind the early play of Stephenson and Daniel, the Jags jumped out to a quick four-point advantage (6-2) in the first set. Stephenson had a pair of kills and a block assist, while Daniel also added two kills of her own.
Troy battled back and tied the frame back up later in the set and with the two clubs tied at 11-11, the Trojans pushed across four-straight points and took a 15-11 lead on Darby Griff's third kill of the set. Griff would end the set with six kills.
USA began to battle back and with Troy holding a 16-13 lead, the Jaguars reeled off five unanswered points to jump back out in front 18-16 following a kill by Daniel and a Trojan attack error.
Neither team was able to pull away from the other the rest of the way as the set went to extra points. The host Trojans sat one-point away from taking the set at 25-24 after another put away by Griff, but Troy committed an attack error on the ensuing point. Daniel then helped South Alabama capitalize on the error as she slammed home her seventh and eighth kills of the match to seal the 27-25 first-set victory.
Along with Daniel's eight kills, one other key stat was in the defensive back court as the Jaguars held a 21-12 dig advantage. Baker led USA in that category with nine digs in the frame.
SET TWO: SOUTH ALABAMA 25, TROY 19
South Alabama once again got off to a quick start in the second set, picking up three of the first four points, but the Trojans charged right back, capturing eight of the next nine points to take a 9-4 lead after a kill by Symone Shaw. Shaw was the offensive spark during the 8-1 Trojan run as she had four kills during that stretch.
Trailing 10-5, the Jaguars rallied back and tied the contest back up at 13-13 on a kill by Daniel. Lewis and Stephenson also had a pair of kills during the 8-3 scoring spurt.
With Troy leading 15-14, Nikki Gittens helped put the Jags back out in front as the sophomore middle blocker recorded three-straight points for USA on a pair of kills and a solo block. Gittens' third kill of the frame gave South Alabama a 17-16 advantage.
Still leading by one at 19-18, South Alabama closed the set strong, ending the frame on a 6-1 run to take a 2-0 lead in the match. Daniel was instrumental down the stretch as she recorded three of USA's final four points and clinched the 25-19 win with her fourth kill of the second set.
Baker came up big again on the defensive side of the net for the Jags as she posted 12 more digs in the frame.
SET THREE: SOUTH ALABAMA 25, TROY 17
Tied 7-7 in the third set, South Alabama took the lead for good as the Jags pushed across three-straight points. Lewis began the brief run with back-to-back kills and Mallory Moore extended USA's lead to 10-7 with one of her six kills on the night.
From there, the Jaguars held control, never allowing the Trojans to get any closer than two.
As they did in the first two sets, the Jags closed strong, ending the set and the match on a 6-0 run. Daniel began the game-ending run with a pair of kills and then clinched the match and the set with a solo block to give USA the 25-17 victory.
NOTES: South Alabama improved to 39-23 in the all-time series versus Troy with the win. The 29 digs by Abby Baker were the most ever by a Jag in a three-set match, eclipsing the previous mark of 25 by Jenna Hassell set versus Florida International on Oct. 29, 2010. That tally also tied with Hassell for fifth-most by a Jag in a match during the Rally Era (2001-Present). Hassell had her 29 digs at Tulane on Sept. 17. 2011 in a five-set match. Junior setter Emily Hundt recorded her sixth double-double of the season with her 23 assists and 11 digs.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Troy Volleyball Falls to South Alabama
TROY, Alabama – The Troy volleyball team dropped a three-set match to South Alabama on Wednesday night, 3-0 (27-25, 25-19, 25-17), at Trojan Arena.
Troy (9-11, 1-7) posted a .135 attack percentage as a team while South Alabama hit .292 as a team. The Jaguars, who won their second straight match, had 49 kills to Troy’s 35 kills. The Trojans have now lost seven straight matches.
Darby Griff led Troy with nine kills, posting six of them in a first set that featured 14 ties. The Trojans had two set points at 24-23 and 25-24 before the Jaguars scored three straight to take the 27-25 win.
The second set was another close one with a one-point differential late as South Alabama (9-8, 4-3) led 19-18. From there the Jaguars scored six of seven to take a 25-19 win. South Alabama also ran away late in the third set as they scored the final six points to turn a 19-17 lead into a 25-17 win.
Defensively, Ali Dowdall led the Trojans with 18 digs. Tineille Waggoner posted 22 assists for the Trojans
Mechell Daniel led the Jaguars with 15 kills while posting a .282 attack percentage. Abby Baker had 29 digs to lead three Jaguars in double digits.
The win by South Alabama tightened an already close all-time series. Since moving to Division I in 1993, Troy holds a 21-19 lead in the series.
The Trojans return to the court this weekend when they travel to take on ULM and UL Lafayette. Troy will first play the Warhawks on Friday at 7 p.m. before traveling south to take on the Ragin’ Cajuns on Saturday at 7 p.m.
For more information on Troy Athletics, visit TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube by searching for Troy Athletics.
Ragin’ Cajuns Sweep Past ULM
MONROE, La. – Sara Mossakowski scored 12 kills and the Ragin’ Cajuns picked up their first sweep of conference play, getting a 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 26-24) on Wednesday at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
The win was Louisiana’s (14-4, 4-4 SBC) fifth straight over the Warhawks (9-11, 1-7 SBC) in the series, and 42nd in 61 tries in the all-time series.
Mossakowski’s added seven digs to her 12 kills, the fourth time in Cajuns’ last five matches where she has reached double-figure kills. Chanelle Gardner added eight kills and Kelly Wiesmann had seven, including four in the first set.
Andrea Hole directed the Cajun s to .233 hitting for the match, dishing out 34 assists to go with five digs and two blocks. Caitlyn Auxilien had a match-high 15 digs, while Kaylee Nemeth led Louisiana with three of Louisiana’s four blocks on the night.
Wiesmann and Mossakowski put home four kills apiece in the opening set, helping stake the Ragin’ Cajuns to a 1-0 lead in the match. UL broke a 9-9 tie with a 7-1 run that included a pair of blocks from Nemeth. The Warhawks cut the lead to as little as 17-14, but got no closer. UL responded with kills from Gardner and Wiesmann, and got to a set-point try on a kill from Mossakowski before a ULM misfire finished the set.
One set later the Cajuns used a run midway through to go up 2-0, with a ULM service error sparking a 8-2 run that turned a 9-9 tie into a 17-11 lead after a Mossakowski kill. UL stretched the lead to 22-16 on a kill from Wiesmann before the Warhsawks cut the lead down to two at 23-21 on a UL ball handling error. But the Cajuns responded with a kill from Mossakowski and forced a ULM misfire to finish off the set, 25-22.
In the third set, Louisiana hit .212 but had to hold off a late Warhawk push to finish off the sweep, despite ULM hitting just .-027. The Cajuns led 24-22 after a Mossakowski ace, but the Warhawks responded with consecutive points to knot the score at 24-24. The Cajuns defense stepped up from there, though, forcing back-to-back Warhawk errors to close out the match.
Louisiana will return home this weekend for consecutive matches at Earl K. Long Gym, beginning Friday against UALR and finishing on Saturday with its first meeting of the season versus Troy.
Georgia State Takes Down Rival Georgia Southern
ATLANTA – Sally Polhamus’ first home win as head coach of Georgia State’s volleyball team comes against the Panthers’ in-state and conference rival, Georgia Southern. GSU won 3-1 on Wednesday in front of the season’s largest crowd.
“I’m so proud of our players with how hard they fought. They were just relentless on all sides of the ball. We really enjoyed this home crowd,” Polhamus said.
Georgia State’s win was fueled by junior Deidra Bohannon’s sixth double-double of the season. Bohannon’s 22 kills on .300 hitting led all players and her 12 digs made for her third-straight double-double. Junior Natalia Nieto dished out 49 assists, her second highest total on the season, and 10 digs to record her first double-double of the year.
“We served very well and we passed well and that allowed our offense to run the game. Great job to our defense. They kept Georgia Southern to .087 [hitting]. That is by far the best we’ve done defensively against a team,” Polhamus said.
NOTING THE PANTHERS…
·Junior Gabby Serafin’s 26 digs was a career-high and falls just ten shy of the school record for a four-set match.
·Junior Brianna Jones, who transferred to Georgia State in the offseason, recorded seven kills for the Panthers to set a new high-mark for her GSU career.
·Georgia State’s defense held the Eagles to .087 hitting. The Panthers used a season-high 76 digs and 6.5 team blocks to slow Georgia Southern’s attack.
·The Panthers hold a 14-7 record all-time against the Eagles, but this win snapped a four-game losing streak for GSU in the series.
·Junior Kitan Ajanaku led the team with four blocks. She also had 10 kills, hitting the double-digit mark for just the second time this season.
Georgia State came out of the gates in the first set and set the tone for the match. After taking a 10-9 lead, the Panthers never turned back and took the set 25-18. GSU used a balanced attack in the first frame with four players getting three or more kills.
After a 25-23 loss in the second set, the Panthers got a boost from junior Eliza Zachary. With six blocks on .417 hitting in the third set, the middle blocker helped the team to a 25-18 win to take a 2-1 lead in the match. GSU never trailed in the third set.
Bohannon turned things up a notch in set four. The Panthers and Eagles were tied at six when Brianna Jones got a kill for GSU. The score would stay in favor of the Panthers from that point on with Bohannon leading the charge to the finish line. The junior recorded the final two kills of the match to finish the set with seven kills on a .700 average.
Georgia State (4-12, 2-5 SBC) hits the road this weekend for a pair of matches. The Panthers face Arkansas State in Jonesboro, Ark. On Friday at 8 p.m. ET before heading to Little Rock, Ark. to face UALR.
Georgia State Downs Georgia Southern 3-1
ATLANTA – Deidra Bohannon tallied 22 kills and 12 digs, and Georgia State held Georgia Southern to .087 hitting to earn a 3-1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-18, 25-16) Sun Belt Conference volleyball victory over the Eagles in GSU Sports Arena Wednesday night.
Jamie DeRatt led the Eagles (2-15, 2-6) with 12 kills, and nine digs, and Kym Coley collected 10 kills and two blocks. Bernetta Moore finished with a team-high 15 digs.
Eliza Zachary had 14 kills and two blocks for Georgia State (4-12, 2-5), while Kitan Ajanaku posted 10 kills and four blocks. Natalia Nieto finished with 49 assists and 10 digs as the Panthers hit .247 for the match.
Georgia Southern had just four more hitting errors than the Panthers but tallied 20 less kills as Georgia State dug up 15 more balls.
“We got outplayed in every aspect of the game tonight,” said Georgia Southern coach Dustin Wood. “We are not going to win a match hitting below .100, and it’s a reflection of hitting errors and how we ran our offense. Defensively, we got out-dug by 15, and the balls we did get up were not good balls. Overall, it was not a good night as a group.”
Trailing 1-0 in the match, the Eagles battled back from a three-point deficit to tie the score 19-19 in the second set. DeRatt, Coley and Erin Dobbeck posted kills in a 5-1 Georgia Southern run that made the margin 24-20. The Panthers scored three in a row with the last point coming on an ace by Nieto, but her next serve sailed long, giving the Eagles the set 25-23.
Georgia State jumped out to a 12-4 lead in the third set. Coley was in on a block and posted two kills as the Eagles trimmed the margin to 14-10 but that was as close as they would get. Leading 12-10 in the fourth set, Bohannon tallied two kills as the Panthers rattled off four straight points to open a 16-10 working margin. Georgia Southern cut the lead to three points on two occasions but would get no closer.
The Eagles stay on the road and meet South Alabama Saturday at 7 p.m. (Eastern).
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