HOUSTON – Sam Houston State came back from an 0-2 deficit to remain undefeated and escape with a five-set victory over HBU, 3-2 (25-27, 18-25, 25-22, 25-23, 15-13), in Southland Conference volleyball Thursday night at Sharp Gym.
Senior outside hitters
Bailey Banks and
Jessica Wooten each recorded a double-double for the Huskies (14-6, 6-2 SLC), with Banks leading HBU with 23 kills, 19 digs and three aces and Wooten adding 17 kills and a team-high 21 digs. Senior middle blocker
Blair Gillard had nine kills and eight blocks, redshirt freshman right side
Ashtyn Richey had eight kills and junior middle blocker
Kayla Davenport hadfive kills and six blocks. Junior setter
Madison O'Brien handed out a career-high 53 assists to go along with 13 digs and seven kills. Senior libero
Hailey Erickson came up with 13 digs and sophomore defensive specialist
Hannah Lewis had nine and a pair of aces.
Brooke White hit .311 and had 26 kills and 24 digs for the Bearkats (10-9, 7-0). Jordyn Vaughn added 19 kills and 15 digs and Taylor Cunningham had 12 kills, 11 blocks and seven digs. Jaclyn Ward posted 56 assists, eight digs and four kills, while Addison Miller chipped in with 18 digs and Madison Wallace with 10.
The Huskies hit .235, while the Bearkats hit .218. SHSU edged HBU in digs, 84-82, but the Huskies had more blocks, 15.5-13.0. HBU served eight aces, but had nine service errors, and SHSU had seven aces and only four service errors.
HBU scored the first three points of the match, but SHSU bounced to tie the set, 7-7. An ace by Gillard was part of a three-point surge to put the Huskies ahead 13-9. Trailing 17-12, the Bearkats scored three in a row of their own to get back within two. HBU scored the next two points, but SHSU tallied four-straight to knot things up again, 19-19. Another ace by Gillard capped a three-point rally to give HBU a 23-20 lead, but SHSU scored the next two to trim its deficit back to one. The Huskies got to set point at 24-22, but a kill by White tied it at 24-24. After the teams traded points, kills by Richey and Wooten put away the set for the Huskies.
The Huskies dominated the second set, taking a four-point lead, then ripping off five-straight points to extend their advantage to nine at 17-8. HBU led by as many as 10 at 21-11, but a pair of three-point runs closed the gap, before a kill by Banks made the score 25-18 and sent the Huskies to the break up two sets to none.
The Huskies took an 8-6 lead in the third, but the Bearkats used a four-point run to take its own two-point lead. The set was tied, 16-16, but a service error by Banks, followed by an ace by Miller put SHSU ahead by two. Still trailing by two at 22-20, back-to-back kills by Banks tied the set, then the Bearkats scored the final three points of the set on kills by White, Wallace and Vaughn to stay alive with a 25-22 victory.
Once again, the Huskies jumped out to an early lead, by as many as three at 10-7, but the Bearkats chipped away and tied it up at 14-14. A solo block by Gillard, then a block by Davenport and Banks put HBU back on top, but SHSU scored three-straight to take a one-point lead and the Huskies sided out to tie it. The Huskies seemed to be in control after a pair of blocks, then a kill by Richey made the score 23-20, but the Bearkats scored the last five points of the set, the last two on aces by Cunningham, to send the match to a fifth set with a 25-23 decision.
The Huskies led 11-9 in the fifth after a kill by Wooten, but the Bearkats scored three in a row to lead by one. A service error by SHSU tied it, 12-12, by a kill and an ace by Vaughn sent the Bearkats to set point. HBU fought off one set point with a block by Gillard and Wooten, but Cunningham put away the final kill for the 15-13 win.
HBU returns to action when it hosts Abilene Christian Saturday at 1 p.m. at Sharp Gym.
