September 12, 2014
Apps Defeat Panthers for First Sun Belt Win
BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University volleyball got its first Sun Belt victory on Friday night at the Black and Gold Challenge, sweeping Georgia State in three sets with scores of 25-13, 25-21 and 25-23.
The Mountaineers (9-0, 1-0 Sun Belt) are now 1-0 in conference play and undefeated on the season after finding a win against the Panthers (2-6, 0-1 Sun Belt) in their first match of the Black and Gold Challenge.
The Apps jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first set as the Panthers struggled to keep up with Appalachian's fast-paced offense. The Mountaineers found three kills from Jess Keller to continue the run, leading Georgia State 10-5.
Appalachian scored five of the next six points and would keep the Panthers at a distance as they found several kills and took the first set easily, 25-13.
App once again found a quick lead in the second, leading the Panthers 8-3. Georgia State would regain composure after a timeout, pulling within three points to trail 10-7. The Mountaineers continued to find points, never letting the Panthers come within four points of them until Georgia State scored four-straight to make the score 23-20.
The Mountaineers found two kills from Keller to take the close second set, 25-21 and lead 2-0.
The third set began as a battle as neither team could hold on to the lead, tying the score seven times. With the score 7-7 Appalachian found four-straight points including kills from Lauren Gray and Emily Corrigan to lead 10-7.
The Panthers would not go away easily, trailing by just two points for several possessions. With the Apps leading 17-15, Georgia State finally made their move, finding four of the next five points to take the lead 19-18.
The score went back-and-forth during the last points of the set, but with the score tied at 23 the Mountaineers pulled it out, finding a kill from Keller and then a game-winning kill from Gray as they took the set 25-23 and won the match, 3-0.
Corrigan and Keller led the team on offense with 12 kills each, while Gray followed with 11 of her own. Gray committed one error on the night for an outstanding .667 hitting percentage.
Sloan Evans recorded a career high of seven kills in the win and Hailey Kerr had five.
Paige Brown tallied 45 assists on the night, while Corrigan led the team on defense as well with 12 digs.
The Panthers were led by Deidra Bohannon and Eliza Zachary as they each notched ten kills. Natalia Nieto had 29 assists and Gabby Serafin recorded 11 digs.
The Mountaineers hit .288 on the night while holding the Panthers to a .137 hitting percentage. The Apps had 5 blocks to Georgia State's three.
Appalachian returns to action for the second half the Black and Gold Challenge when they play Radford tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. and Maryland at 7 p.m.
Panthers Lose to App State in Conference Opener
BOONE, N.C. – In its first match of the Black and Gold Challenge, the Georgia State volleyball team lost 3-0 to host Appalachian State on Friday night. Juniors Deidra Bohannon and Eliza Zachary each contributed 10 kills, but it wasn’t enough to stall a Mountaineer team that hit .288.
NOTING THE PANTHERS…
· Juniors Deidra Bohannon and Eliza Zachary led the attack for the Panthers with 10 kills each. Zachary continued her hot streak and has 31 kills on .451 hitting in the last two matches.
· Natalia Nieto added 29 assists to lead the team with 205 on the year. She is currently seventh on Georgia State’s all-time assists leaderboard.
· Junior Kitan Ajanaku had three blocks to go with her six kills on .286 hitting. Fellow junior Gabby Serafin led the Panthers in digs with 11.
· Appalachian State outhit the Panthers .288-.137. The Mountaineers are 9-0 on the year and received several top-25 votes in last week’s poll.
· Georgia State’s two opponents tomorrow duked it out earlier on Friday with Radford defeating Maryland 3-2.
Georgia State improved as the match went on, but it was too little too late for the Panthers. After a sluggish start, the Mountaineers claimed the first set 25-13. In the second set, Georgia State kept it close until the end when Appalachian State rallied after a timeout and shut the door, 25-21. The third set ping-ponged back and forth as the two sides traded blows. Polhamus’ squad held a 22-21 lead, but couldn’t hang on and dropped the set 25-23 to lose the match.
Georgia State plays Maryland (6-1) on Saturday at 10 a.m., and Radford (7-2) at 4 p.m., to wrap up the Black and Gold Challenge. Follow along on Twitter via @GeorgiaStateVB.
UL Lafayette Runs Record To 8-0
HOUSTON, Texas – Sara Mossakowski hit a career-best .565 and Andrea Hole picked up her sixth double-double of the season with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-12, 25-22) win over Sam Houston State on Friday in the opening match of the Flo Hyman Collegiate Cup.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (8-0) start is now tied with the 1986 team for the second-best start in program history, while also picking up just their second win over the Bearkats’ (6-3) in six tries since 2007.
Louisiana hit .325 for the match, with Mossakowski leading the way with 14 kills. She added five digs and three service aces, misfiring only once on 23 swings. Hole, meanwhile, continued to fill up the stat sheet with 26 assists, 15 digs and three kills.
Stacey Reilly added nine digs and three kills,, and Caitlyn Auxilien had seven digs. Abby Filce had four blocks to go with five kills, while Chanelle Gardner and Kaylee Nemeth each had three blocks apiece.
Deveny Well-Gibson led all players with 16 kills for Sam Houston State, who was playing its second of back-to-back matches after a 3-2 win over Oral Roberts in the tournament opener.
Mossakowski delivered five kills in the first set and the Ragin’ Cajuns went on an 8-2 run to close out the first set, going ahead with a 25-20 win. One set later the Cajuns rolled to a 2-0 lead, closing the second set on a 14-2 run and finishing it when Filce found Mossakowski for her ninth kill of the match for the set’s final point.
Sam Houston came out fast in the third set, racing out to a 14-9 lead and still holding a four-point lead as late as the 20-16 point. But the Cajuns sided out with a Bearkat service error and followed Hole’s serve for five more consecutive points to stake itself to a 22-20 lead. The Kats drew back to within 23-22 before the Cajun defense forced a pair of errors for the match’s final points.
Louisiana will close out the Flo Hyman Collegiate Classic with a pair of matches on Saturday, beginning at 9:00 a.m. against Oral Roberts and concluding with a 3:00 p.m. match with host Houston.
A-State Volleyball Sweeps UAPB in SIUE Invitational
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (9/12/14) – The Arkansas State volleyball team swept the UAPB Lady Lions 3-0 (25-11, 25-16, 25-17) in its first match of the SIU-Edwardsville Invitational Friday afternoon at the Vadalabene Center in Edwardsville, Ill.
The Red Wolves (3-4) and UAPB (1-6) began the first set by going back and forth, but with the score 8-8 A-State used a 10-0 run, capped by a Kariana Castanon-Hill kill, to take an 18-8 lead. UAPB got within 19-9, but the Red Wolves went on a 6-2 run, finished by a Mallory Warrington kill, to earn the 25-11 first set victory and give A-State a 1-0 lead in the match.
The second set began much like the first with both teams battling to a 6-6 tie before A-State used a 7-1 run to stretch its lead out to 13-7. The Lady Lions got within four points of the Red Wolves at 20-16, but a 5-0 run featuring two aces from Drew Jones gave the Red Wolves a 25-16 victory in the second game and a 2-0 lead in the match.
A-State raced out to a 10-2 lead in the third set after a Shelby Holmes kill, but a 3-0 UAPB run got the Lady Lions within 10-5. UAPB got within three points at 13-10, but the Red Wolves went on a 4-0 run, capped by a Kendal Davis and Jessica Uke block, to stretch their lead out to 17-10. The Lady Lions got as close as 21-16, but a 4-1 run by Arkansas State gave the Red Wolves a 25-17 third set victory and 3-0 match win.
“This was a complete team effort and it was nice to get everyone some playing time,” A-State volleyball coach David Rehr said. “It was important for us to continue last weekend’s success and we did that. UAPB battled early with us in the first two sets, but I was proud of the way we took control at the end of each set.”
Castanon-Hill registered eight kills for the Red Wolves on a .545 hitting percentage, while Jones tallied eight kills on a .421 hitting percentage. Warrington handed out 36 assists to lead A-State and also registered two service aces. Defensively, Markie Schaedig led Arkansas State with 20 digs and Anna Murphy recorded seven blocks, including a block solo.
The Red Wolves return to action Saturday afternoon in the SIUE Invitational against Southern Utah at 1 p.m. Arkansas State wraps up the SIUE Invitational Saturday night with a match against host SIU-Edwardsville at 7 p.m.
Jaguars win fourth straigh with 3-1 victory over Northwestern State
STARKVILLE, Miss. – The University of South Alabama volleyball team picked up its fourth-straight win Friday afternoon as the Jaguars captured a 3-1 (25-22, 23-25, 25-15, 25-15) victory over Northwestern State at the Maroon Classic hosted by Mississippi State at the Newell-Grissom Building.
"We played much cleaner in the third and fourth set of our match today," South Alabama head coach Amy Hendrichovsky said. "We definitely controlled our side of the net better than we did in the first and second set."
The Jags (4-4) will close out with a pair of matches on Saturday as they take on Nicholls State (11 a.m.) and Memphis (5 p.m.). Live stats for both matches will be available at www.USAJaguars.com on the Jaguar volleyball schedule page.
South Alabama used a balanced offensive attack in the four-set victory as five Jaguars recorded seven kills or better. Leading the way for USA was sophomore outside hitter Mechell Daniel finished with 14 kills and 14 digs for the second-straight match for her fourth double-double of the season. Mallory Moore and Nikki Gittens also finished in double figures offensively, carding 11 and 10 kills, respectively. Symone Stephenson added eight kills and hit a match-high .438, while Jessica Lewis chipped in with eight kills and eight digs. Junior setter Emily Hundt distributed the ball well, registering 45 assists and eight digs of her own in the win.
"We knew coming into this season that we didn't want to be a team that relied on one or two players," Hendrichovsky said. "To have five or six balanced attackers that are reliable for out setter is pretty important for us and it makes us harder to defend. It's very important for us to have four or five players who are able to get some offensive production for our team."
USA was also solid in the serving department as the Jags had 10 aces to the Lady Demons' three. Leading the way from beyond the service line was Jenna Hassell, who tied a season-high with three aces. Hundt, Gittens and Abby Baker also finished the match with two aces each.
Baker was outstanding at the libero position for South Alabama in the win as the sophomore posted a career-best 34 digs. The 34 digs bested her previous high of26 and were the most by a Jag in a four-set match and the most by a Jag during the Rally Era, eclipsing Hassell's mark of 33 against Georgia State during the 2012 season.
"Abby (Baker) had a solid day defensively for us and at times kept the rally going for us," Hendrichovky said. "She was really steady defensively for us today."
Savannah Stewart had 13 digs as well for USA in the win.
Northwestern State fell to 3-4 on the season with the loss. Stacey DiFrancesco led the Lady Demons with seven kills and also posted 20 digs in the loss. Ashley Elrod, Mackenzie Neely and Lauren Agan also added six kills apiece. Bailey Martin led the club with 25 digs.
SET ONE: SOUTH ALABAMA 25, NORTHWESTERN STATE 22
Northwestern State got off to a quick start in the match, beginning the opening set with a 5-1 run. DiFrancesco and Glynna Johnson – who had five block assists – teamed up to turn back a Jaguar attack and give NSU the early four-point advantage.
The Jaguars battled back and tied the contest back up on three occasions over the next several points and took a three-point advantage (18-15), following a kill from Lewis and a NSU miscue.
Northwestern State responded with four of the next five points and tied the set up at 19-19 on an Elrod put away, but Lewis quickly put the Jags back out in front for good with another kill.
The South Alabama frontline defense sealed the first-set win as Daniel and Stephenson combined to block a Demon attack and give USA the 25-22 victory.
SET TWO: NORTHWESTERN STATE 25, SOUTH ALABAMA 23
In the second set, attack errors would prove costly for the Jaguars as they would commit 11 in the frame.
USA led by as much as three during the first half of the second set, but the Lady Demons came right back and tied the contest up at 10-10 on an ace from Natalie Jaegar.
Still tied at 14-14, Northwestern State took advantage of some Jaguar attack errors. Elrod broke the tie and NSU then took a 17-14 lead after back-to-back Jag miscues.
South Alabama continued to battle and later knotted the set back up at 20-20, but six points later, Northwestern State was able to grab the final two points and even the match at one set apiece. Vanessa Coleman's kill put the Lady Demons at set point and USA then committed its 11th attack error of the frame to give NSU the 25-23 win.
SET THREE: SOUTH ALABAMA 25, NORTHWESTERN STATE 15
After hitting .082 in the previous set and registering 11 attack errors, South Alabama came out of the break much more focused and only committed four attack errors in each of the final two sets.
Led by Daniel – who had five kills and hit .400 in the frame, USA jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead, two points coming on kills from the Chelmsford, England, native. From that point, South Alabama never relinquished the lead.
The Lady Demons managed to trim the deficit to 5-4, but that was as close as they would get in the set as USA rattled off five unanswered points and nine of the next 11 to extend its advantage out to 14-6 after another Daniel kill.
South Alabama went on to take the third set, 25-15 after back-to-back aces from Gittens.
SET FOUR: SOUTH ALABAMA 25, NORTHWESTERN STATE 15
USA maintained the momentum and led wire-to-wire in the final set, beginning the fourth set on an 8-1 run. Baker gave South Alabama the seven-point lead with an ace of her own.
From there, NSU was only able to get as close as two on two occasions, the last coming at 15-13 on a Agan kill, but Moore and Gittens quickly pushed the South Alabama advantage back out to four over the next two points as they each slammed home a kill.
The Jaguars closed strong, picking up the final five points of the match to take the 25-15 victory.
NOTES: With the win, South Alabama improved to 5-3 in the all-time series versus Northwestern State. The meeting was the first between the two clubs since the 1995 season where they met at the Southeastern Louisiana Invitational. USA will take on its second-straight Southland Conference member when it faces Nicholls State on Saturday morning. Abby Baker's 34 digs were a career-best for the Jag sophomore. The 34 digs bested her previous high of26 and were the most by a Jag in a four-set match and the most by a Jag during the Rally Era, eclipsing Hassell's mark of 33 against Georgia State during the 2012 season.
Mavs pick up two victories at Hilton Maverick Invitational
ARLINGTON, Texas – UT Arlington finished the first day of the Hilton Maverick Invitational with two wins over Texas Southern and Florida Gulf Coast at College Park Center on Friday. The pair of wins propel the Mavericks to 9-2 this season and just one win short of the program's 1000th victory.
"We talked about the fact that we had to play with a lot more energy coming going into this second match and I think we responded really well," said UT Arlington coach Diane Seymour.
"I thought in the second match our intensity was good and our response when things didn't go our way was good as well."
UTA 3, Texas Southern 1
UT Arlington beat Texas Southern (25-14, 25-12, 24-26, 25-11) in the first of two matches on Friday.
The Mavericks hit .265 in the match while the Lady Tigers hit just .080 in the four-set match. UTA also made their presence known at the net as they recorded 16 blocks compared to two blocks for TSU.
Freshman Qiana Canete recorded her fifth double-double of the season as she had a match-high 15 kills and 23 digs. The OH was efficient with her attacks as she recorded a hitting percentage of .321. Briana Sharratt recorded her first double-double of the season as she notched a career-high ten kills and 11 blocks for the Mavericks. Taylor Gross and Stacey Koch also chipped in offensively as they recorded ten and nine kills respectively.
After an attack error by the Mavericks cut their lead down to one point at 10-9 in the opening set, UTA responded with an 11-1 run to take a 21-10 lead. The Mavs ended the set by scoring three straight points capped off by a Koch and Canete block to take the set 25-14.
Canete paced the Mavericks through the first set as she recorded a match-high six kills with a hitting percentage of .400.
Sharratt also got in the action as she notched four kills, a hitting percentage of .800 and three blocks. As a team UTA hit .333 compared to just .097 for the Lady Tigers. The Mavericks also controlled the net as they recorded 5.5 blocks while Texas Southern registered zero.
In the second set the Mavericks turned an 8-7 lead into a 20-8 lead thanks to Sharratt who recorded two kills and two blocks during the 12-1 run. UTA ended the set by scoring five of the last six points, including a kill by Canete that ended the set at 25-12 giving the Mavs a 2-0 lead.
Canete's explosive play carried over into the second set as she recorded seven kills and a hitting percentage of .600 while also notching nine digs for UTA. Sharratt continued to be a force at the net as she recorded five kills and three blocks in the second frame. The Mavericks hitting prowess continued as well as they hit .457 while Texas Southern hit .000.
After a 15-10 lead for the Lady Tigers had the Mavericks on the ropes in the third set, UTA was forced to take a timeout and responded out of the break with three straight points to cut the Texas Southern lead to two points. When the Lady Tigers held a 24-18 lead in the second set, UTA answered back with six straight points which was capped off with a block by Sharratt and Gross to tie the match at 24. Unfortunately for the Mavs that is as close as they would get to winning the set as Texas Southern scored back-to-back points to take the third set 26-24.
Gross helped spark the Mavs offensively in the third frame as she recorded a team high four kills. The Mavericks struggled hitting the ball in the set as they had eight attack errors and a hitting percentage of .023.
After the fourth set was tied at six points, UTA stormed back with a 16-4 run to take control of the set with a 22-10 lead. The Mavericks then ended the fourth set and the match by scoring three straight points, including back-to-back kills by Koch.
UTA 3, FGCU 1
UT Arlington seemed reenergized in the second match of the day as they came away with the victory in four sets (25-18, 21-25, 25-19, 25-23). Gross was the catalyst for the Mavericks offense as she had 14 kills with a hitting percentage of .400.
As a team the Mavericks hit .201 and registered 14 blocks compared to the Eagles who hit .169 with four blocks.
After a back and forth beginning of the first set with the two teams knotted up at 10 points apiece, UTA responded with a 6-1 run that put it up 16-11. While the Eagles did their best to close the gap at 18-15 in favor of the Mavericks, UT Arlington closed out the set as a Hannah Baptiste kill gave the set to the Mavs.
Gross led the Mavericks through the first set as she notched four kills with a hitting percentage of .571. Baptiste also did her part as she recorded three kills on three attacks with a perfect hitting percentage of 1.000. As a team UTA hit .444 compared to just .211 for FGCU.
After the Mavs built up a six point lead in the second set at 13-7, the Eagles stormed back with a 12-1 run that put UTA down 19-14. The Mavericks responded with a 4-2 run that cut FGCU's lead down to three points. Despite the effort to close the gap, the Eagles claimed the second set 25-21.
Gross paced UTA in the second set as her five kills helped earn her a hitting percentage of .571. Amanda Welsh did her part to direct the offense as she recorded eight assists in the second frame.
With the match tied at eight points, the Mavericks went on a 6-2 run to take a 14-10 lead. Leading 18-16 later in the set, UTA went on a 7-3 run that ended the set and gave the Mavs the crucial third set.
UT Arlington's offense was led by Gross who recorded four kills and a hitting percentage of .571 in the third set. Caitlyn Cooney did her part defensively for the Mavs as she had nine digs.
With UTA trailing 13-9 in the fourth set, the Mavs responded with an 8-2 run which was finished with a Koch block. While FGCU would cut the lead down to one point at 23-22, UTA failed to hand over the lead as a Canete kill ended the set at 25-23 and gave the Mavericks the match.
Canete led the charge for UTA during the final set as she recorded five kills and four digs. Koch and Ashley Bennett made their mark at the net as they each notched four blocks in the set.
The Mavericks will return to action on Saturday afternoon as they wrap up play at the Hilton Maverick Classic at 2 p.m. against Houston Baptist.
Warhawks Dominate in Back-to-Back Shutout Victories
LAKE CHARLES, La. -- In dominating fashion, the ULM Volleyball team (4-6) earned its third and fourth shutout victories of the season on Friday when the Warhawks blanked both Prairie View A&M and Alcorn State, 3-0, in day one of the Cowgirl Classic from inside the Memorial Gym.
The back-to-back triumphs catapult the Warhawks record to 4-6 on the young season with only three nonconference matches remaining. Dominance
ULM 3, Prairie View A&M 0 - Game 9
To earn their fourth overall victory against Prairie View A&M, the Warhawks capitalized on a .311 offensive efficiency mark as they sailed to a 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-21) victory Friday morning.
"Good win,” head coach Patrick Hiltz said. “It was a much needed win. We seemed very relaxed until the third set when Prairie View started to push back and show some life on their side of the net. We started to forget our systems and made some very uncharacteristic errors. In the end we found our breath and were able to close out the match.”
Swartz finished with 11 kills on 23 swings for an efficient .348 attack percentage. She added seven digs as well for arguably her best performance of the season to date. Fellow sophomore teammate, Hope Pawlik was just as stellar from the outside hitting .350 with nine kills on 20 attacks.
ULM asserted its presence early on by jumping out to a 6-1 lead before pulling away midway through the first stanza. The team made it 20-10 when senior Alannah Cullum registered back-to-back service aces to extend the Warhawks’ biggest lead of the season before putting the first set to rest.
Over the next two sets, ULM erased any thought of a comeback by asserting a solid lead early on in each stanza. Swartz ended all three sets with a kill to clinch each stanza.
“Our middles were strong all match. We felt we had an advantage there and we were able to exploit the matchup. In order to run the middles on offense we have to pass well,” Hiltz uttered. “We executed well when it came to actually playing the ball. We can probably do a better job mentally of maintaining focus, communication and energy. That will be our focus moving forward."
Bouncing back from an injury sustained Wednesday, Bayleigh Hoffman showed resiliency by posting her third career double-double with 18 assists and 10 digs. Freshman counterpart Mary Anselmo accounted for 18 assists of her own and six digs.
Both senior leaders played near flawless matches during the team’s third win. Marcela Araya chipped in with 14 digs and four assists from the libero position, while Cullum had a match-high .714 offensive percentage on six kills, falling just shy of her career efficiency mark.
ULM 3, Alcorn State 0 - Game 10
The Warhawks improve to 13-0 all-time versus Alcorn State following an overpowering, 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-18), triumph late Friday afternoon.
“Every win for us is a welcome thing,” Hiltz added. “However, we are also trying to get better in everything we do with every set we play. I didn't feel like we were ready to play in set one. We were struggling to find our focus. Our attention to detail was lacking. And we were swinging recklessly into the net and their block.”
Newcomer Taylor Zaeske set new offensive career highs in kills and attack percentage during the match. The sophomore accumulated 15 kills on 28 swings with only three errors for a match-high .429 efficiency mark.
The Warhawks hopped on the board quick with 13 kills during a 25-18 set one success before cruising to eight point and seven point landslides in the final two stanzas.
“I have to give credit to Taylor for leading the way offensively in set two and really getting the team back on track,” Hiltz continued. “From there, our serving got better and things seemed to work a bit more smoothly for us. We're going to have to play better tomorrow in order to keep our winning streak going."
Three freshmen played an integral role in the win. Jennifer McClendon recorded a career-high eight kills and four service aces. Anselmo and Hoffman assisted on 19 and 18 of the team’s 45 kills, respectively.
Araya posted 23 digs despite only playing three sets, the fifth time she’s topped 20 digs on the season. Pawlik was consistent as usual, adding eight kills and two blocks to the cause. Junior transfer Kimberlie Alvarado led the team with three blocks to go with four kills and four digs.
ULM returns to the courts for another doubleheader tomorrow. First serve is set for 9:00 a.m. against Tennessee Tech inside the Memorial Gym.
Be sure to follow the team socially on Twitter, Instagram (@ULM_VB) and Facebook to stay up to date with the latest news, scores and highlights from the Warhawks throughout the season.
UALR Volleyball Splits Friday Doubleheader With Win Over Lamar
NORMAN, Okla. – After dropping their first match of the day against Cal State Northridge (25-17, 25-16, 25-19), UALR got back on track Friday evening by sweeping Lamar in three sets (25-23, 25-21, 25-23), as well as giving head coach Van Compton her 450th career win.
Because of her effort during the tournament, junior Sonja Milanovic was named to the Oklahoma Nike Invitational All-Tournament Team. Over the three-game stretch, Milanovic tallied 30 kills and 21 digs.
Lamar came into Friday night’s match against UALR with a 0-7 record after being swept by Portland State earlier in the day. Lamar kept the fight close throughout the match, but UALR held tough and went the distance.
A neck and neck first set started the match off in competitive fashion. The two squads were never more than two points apart throughout the set, and neither would rally for more than three points at a time. UALR’s only three-point rally came at the end of the set as the Trojans were down 22-23. With two kills and a ball handling error by Lamar, UALR was able to pull off a tight, first set win. Junior Edina Selimovic was the Trojans’ top scorer in the set with four kills, as well as adding two blocks. Junior Katarina Bursac helped the Trojans’ on both sides of the ball by contributing 12 assists and three blocks.
The second set started out just like the first as each team traded blows. With UALR up 13-9, Lamar made a run by scoring six straight points until a service error ended the run. But the Cardinals’ lead didn’t last long as the Trojans went on a 12-6 run to put away the second set.
The final set was as close as the first as UALR trailed by no more than three points until it was able to tie the set at 13. From there, the Trojans and Cardinals traded the lead until again tying the set at 18. With UALR having an 18-17 lead, Lamar was able to find some momentum by going on a four point scoring run. UALR answered right back by going on a 7-2 run to capture the set and match.
The Trojans were led on offense by career kills leader Edina Begic, who turned in a near double-double with a 16 kills and seven digs, while also hitting a smooth .483. Senior Adisa Hodzic was also able to contribute by racking up seven kills of her own. After tallying 12 assists in the first set, Bursac ended the contest with a career-high 34 assists and three blocks.
UALR also looked strong on defense with 41 digs and 14 blocks. Senior Capri Rino and Milanovic each had 11 and 10 digs, respectively. Milanovic added six kills, as well as two blocks. Redshirt sophomore Carolee Dillard racked up a team high four blocks to go along with four kills.
The other match of the day did not go as well for the Trojans. UALR started the match strong by getting a 6-3 lead early in the first set. Four of the six points came off of Cal State Northridge errors. The match then became a back and forth affair as the two squads tied the set at 12. CSUN would then go on a 12-5 run to clinch the first set. The Matadors’ Casey Hinger would rack up four kills during the run and ended the first set with five. Hinger would end the game with 13 kills and an outstanding .857 hitting percentage.
CSUN carried over the momentum from the first set to start the frame with a 4-1 lead with all four points coming off of UALR attack errors. The set only went downhill from there as the Matadors stretched its lead to 10 points at 20-10. UALR tried its best, but could only bring the deficit back down to seven before CSUN took the set.
The final set was a repeat of the previous two sets. The Matadors started the set off on a 17-7 run and at one point, scored five straight points. Down 23-12, UALR showed a spark of life by racking up five straight points and forcing CSUN to take a timeout. After the timeout, the Matadors would score a point, only to be answered with 2 more Trojan points. Bringing an 11 point deficit back down to five, UALR showed up just late, as Cal State Northridge took the set and match on a service error.
Milanovic had the best match for the Trojans by tallying a game-leading 14 kills and a team-high .345 hitting percentage. The other noteworthy offensive performance came from Bursac, who helped the Trojans’ cause with 21 assists. Bursac also contributed on defense by racking up seven digs and three blocks.
UALR returns to action on Wednesday (Sept. 17) to begin Sun Belt play against ULM in its first home game of the season at Jack Stephens Center.
VCU Downs Georgia Southern Volleyball 3-1
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Kalah Jones posted 16 kills and six digs, and Janelle Sykes added 14 kills to lead VCU to a 3-1 (25-22, 25-13, 24-26, 25-23) volleyball victory over Georgia Southern in the first match of the Carolina Classic in Carmichael Arena Friday afternoon.
Jamie DeRatt tallied 20 kills and eight digs for the Eagles (0-7), and Megan Chevalier collected a career-high 16 kills and seven digs. Kym Coley notched 10 kills and Kat Minnerly finished with 50 assists and 10 digs. It was the seventh 50-plus assist match of the junior’s career.
Jessica Young added 11 kills for VCU (2-5), and Cecilia Aragao posted 48 assists and seven digs.
“We only had one lineup to go with tonight because of injuries, and our young players got a chance to gain experience on the floor, which will help them in the future,” said Georgia Southern coach Dustin Wood. “Jamie and Kym produced but overall, we were a little up and down. Things are not going our way right now, but we will learn from this adversity and it will make us stronger mentally.”
The match was back-and-forth throughout, save for the second set. The Eagles trailed the match 2-1 and were tied 23-23 in the fourth set after a kill by Coley. VCU answered with a Jones kill, and an Eagle attack error ended the set and the match.
Georgia Southern trailed 21-18 late in the first but scored two in a row on a DeRatt kill and a Ram hitting error. After an Eagle serving error, Sykes put down a kill for VCU to make the margin 23-20, but Coley answered with consecutive kills for the Eagles. A Georgia Southern attack error made it set point, and Nora Reed put down the final kill for VCU.
Down 2-0 in the match in the third set, DeRatt broke a 23-23 tie with a kill, but VCU answered with a kill by Jones. DeRatt put the Eagles back on top with a kill, and the Rams were whistled for a ball-handling error to end the set.
Georgia Southern plays two matches tomorrow in the Carolina Classic, taking on host North Carolina, which is ranked 17th in the country, at noon in Carmichael Arena. The Eagles also face No. 16 Kentucky at 5 p.m.
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Troy Volleyball’s Winning Streak Snapped at Auburn
AUBURN, Alabama – The Troy volleyball team saw its five-match winning streak snapped on Friday night as Auburn defeated the Trojans, 3-0 (25-18, 25-11, 25-21), at the Active Ankle Challenge inside Auburn Arena.
Troy’s (8-2) two losses this season have now come on the road at Clemson and Auburn. The Trojans hit just -.037 in the match. Darby Griff posted a team-high nine kills and .240 attack percentage. Ali Dowdall and Blair Winston each had 11 digs to lead the Trojans.
Auburn (4-3) was led by Macy Reece who posted 12 kills and just one error on 23 swings for a .478 attack percentage. The Tigers hit .252 as a team and recorded 8.0 total team blocks.
The first set was tight early as Troy weathered the energy of a good crowd in Auburn’s home opener. The Trojans led 10-8 before the Tigers rattled off eight straight points to take control at 16-10. The Tigers rode that wave to a 25-18 win in the first.
Auburn dominated the second set, 25-11, as Troy hit -.128 with 11 errors and just six kills. Troy didn’t roll over, however, as the two sides went back-and-forth in the third set.
The two sides were tied eight times on their way to a 16-16 score before Troy scored three straight for a 19-16, forcing an Auburn timeout. The Tigers then came out and scored five straight to go ahead 21-19, taking control late in a 25-21 third set win.
The Trojans continue play at the Active Ankle Challenge on Saturday when they take on South Florida at 9:30 a.m. and Winthrop at 5 p.m. Winthrop defeated South Florida in five sets on Friday afternoon.
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Bobcats Push Texas Tech, Incarnate Word to Edge
LUBBOCK, Texas – Friday proved to be a long day for the Texas State Bobcats as they played a full 10 sets in two matches against undefeated Big 12 opponent Texas Tech and Incarnate Word. Unfortunately, the Bobcats, they fell in both matches, 3-2, to drop to 5-6 on the season. Texas Tech won, 17-25, 21-25, 25-16, 25-21, 15-12, while Incarnate Word outlasted Texas State, 25-21, 17-25, 25-18, 20-25, 17-15.
The Bobcats looked strong coming out of the gate against the Red Raiders, building up a 2-0 lead in the match behind the work of Shelby Vas Matt, who finished with 22 kills and just one error (.429) to lead all players in the match. She added 16 digs for her ninth double-double of the year and second of the day.
But Texas Tech’s Breeann David led the Red Raiders back from the 2-0 deficit with a team-high 18 kills and added six blocks. In a match reminiscent to last season’s meeting, Texas Tech fought back from down two sets to win three consecutive sets and the match.
Kelsey Weynand struck 12 kills against Texas Tech while Jordan Kohl and Lauren Kirch combined for 13. Ali Gonzales ran the offense for 37 assists while Sierra Smith added 17 digs. Brenna Lyles contributed 10 digs in the match.
Texas State scored the first two points of the opening set, but then Texas Tech went on a 5-0 run. Vas Matt ended the run with one of her match-high 22 kills and led the Bobcats to an eventual 25-17 first-set victory. The second set was a bit different. Texas State was in control the entire frame and capped it with an ace from Gonzales for the 25-21 win.
The Red Raiders, however, answered to stay alive in the third set with an impressive 25-16 win. Texas Tech’s David came alive in the third set both offensively and defensively for the Red Raiders and posed a problem for the Bobcats. In the 2013 matchup between the teams, she finished with 23 kills, 14 digs and four blocks. Friday she had 18 kills and six blocks playing in just the front row against the Bobcats.
Against Incarnate Word, Kirch led the Bobcats in kills in the five-setter with 14 on a .429 hitting percentage while Vas Matt put down 13 and Keeley Davis added 12.
Smith totaled 22 digs against UIW while Vas Matt added 13 in another double-double for the sophomore. Jordan Moore and Lyles added 11 digs each while Moore gave out 46 of Texas State’s 61 assists.
At the net, Amanda Watkins led the Bobcat effort with three block assists while Kirch, Davis and Kohl were both in on two blocks each. Unfortunately, it was not enough to get past the Cardinals.
Texas State will continue the Texas Tech Invitational with a 10 a.m. match against Gardner-Webb on Saturday before returning home to host UT Arlington in the team’s first Sun Belt Conference match of the season.