HOUSTON – HBU got off to a slow start, hitting .024 and dropping the first set to Abilene Christian, but the Huskies hit .304 the rest of the way, propelling them to a 3-1 (20-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-21) victory and snapping the Wildcats' six-match winning streak in Southland Conference volleyball Thursday night at Sharp Gym.
Sophomore outside hitter
Mikayla Vivens led four Huskies with double-figure kills with 18 to go along with nine digs. Sophomore middle blocker
Megan Patillo posted 12 kills and five blocks, senior middle blocker
Kayla Davenport hit .688 with 11 kills, no errors and four blocks, while sophomore right side
Ashtyn Richey had 10 kills and three blocks. Senior setter
Madison O'Brien recorded 47 assists, 16 digs and seven kills and freshman outside hitter
Catherine Drapela chipped in with eight kills. Freshman defensive specialist
Cici Collins led HBU (12-13, 5-6 SLC) with 18 digs and junior libero
Hannah Lewis had 16 and junior defensive specialist
Camie Copeland had eight.
Katelyn Mueller and Marybeth Sandercox each had 13 kills for ACU (12-11, 9-2), while Jacey Smith had eight kills and 14 digs. Lauren Walker added seven kills and three blocks. Kendall Bosse had 36 assists and nine digs. Lillian Drever came up with 30 digs and Mikai Brown had 10.
HBU hit .239 for the match, while holding ACU to .195. The Huskies outdug the Wildcats, 77-76, outblocked them, 9-8, and had five aces to ACU's one.
The Huskies led 5-3 early in the first, but the Wildcats scored six-straight to take a three-point lead. The set was tied, 14-14, but ACU won the next four. HBU answered with the next three and still trailed by one at 21-20, but ACU took the final four points for the 25-20 decision.
Trailing 11-10 in the second, HBU scored seven of the next eight, which included three kills by Davenport and two by Vivens, for a five-point lead. The Wildcats closed within two at 21-19 and 23-21, but Vivens put the set away with back-to-back kills to even the match.
ACU led 4-2 early in the third, but HBU went on a five-point run. ACU tied the set at 16-16, then each team sided out. The Huskies took the next four points on a kkill by Richey, a block by Patillo and O'Brien, an ace by Copeland and an ACU attacking error. Vivens once again had the final say in the set with a kill to put away a 25-20 win.
HBU fell behind 5-3 in the fourth, then ripped off five-straight points on a kill by Richey, a block by Patillo and Richey, another kill by Richey and back-to-back kills by Vivens and Drapela. ACU took a 16-15 lead, but Patillo was in on a pair of blocks that pushed the Huskies back ahead by one. Vivens and Davenport each had kills for a 21-18 advantage. Leading 23-21, HBU got another block by Richey and Davenport, then Drapela clinched the match with a kill.
The Huskies return to action when they host Sam Houston State, facing both teams tied for second in the league this week, Saturday at 1 p.m. at Sharp Gym. The YouTube Husky Sports Network video broadcast with
Ivan Smith will be available on HBUHuskies.com.
