SAN ANTONIO – HBU looked poised to clinch fifth place in the league standings up two sets to one and leading in the fourth set, but Incarnate Word rebounded for a 3-2 (25-20, 18-25, 17-25, 25-22, 15-12) victory in Southland Conference volleyball Thursday night at the McDermott Center. The Huskies wrapped up the regular season, but still clinched their spot in the conference tournament due to a New Orleans loss.
Sophomore outside hitter
Mikayla Vivens led four Huskies in double-figure kills with her league-leading 22
nd double-double, recording 15 kills, 12 digs and three aces. Sophomore middle blocker
Megan Patillo posted 13 kills and seven blocks, while senior middle blocker
Kayla Davenport had 12 kills and seven blocks HBU (15-15, 8-8 SLC). Redshirt freshman outside hitter
Kelly Colwell added 12 kills and four blocks and sophomore right side
Ashtyn Richey had six kills and seven blocks. Senior setter
Madison O'Brien registered her 19
th double-double with 48 assists and 14 digs. Junior libero
Hannah Lewis came up with 19 digs, junior defensive specialist
Camie Copeland recorded a career-high 17 and freshman defensive specialist
Cici Collins had nine.
Bethany Clapp and Julia Monday each had 19 kills for UIW (10-16, 7-8), with Clapp adding 15 digs. Pilar Gonzaba handed out 43 assists to go along with nine digs. Madelynn Miller had 25 digs and Alyssa Carlin had 10. Allison Waits and Carissa McGarity each had five blocks, with Maddie Slaughter adding five kills and three aces.
The Huskies hit .205, while holding the Cardinals to .169. HBU edged UIW in digs, 76-75, outblocked them, 15-9, and had eight aces to the Cardinals' six.
The fifth set was tied, 10-10, when a kill by Clapp and back-to-back kills by Monday put UIW ahead by three. Patillo and Monday traded kills, then Davenport helped the Huskies stave off a set point, before Monday clinched the comeback with a kill for the 15-12 victory.
HBU led 11-10 in the first, but UIW took the next three for a two-point edge. The set was tied at 16-16, but the Cardinals took control with a six-point run that featured four kills by Clapp. UIW went on to claim the opener, 25-20.
Patillo had two kills and a block as the Huskies ripped off six-straight to take a 9-3 lead in the second. UIW rebounded and closed to within one at 12-11, but HBU answered with a four-point spurt to restore their advantage to five. The Cardinals once again tried to mount a comeback, getting within three at 19-16, but an ace by Copeland and a kill by Patillo put the Huskies back up by six. A kill by O'Brien gave HBU a 25-18 win to even the match.
The Huskies jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the third, but the Cardinals were able to get within two at 9-7. Leading 10-8, HBU used an ace by O'Brien and a block by Davenport and Richey to extend their margin to six. Holding a four-point lead, the Huskies got a block by Patillo and O'Brien and a kill by Colwell to cap a four-point spurt that made the score 20-12. After UIW fought off two set points, Vivens put it away for a 25-17 victory.
HBU took an 11-4 lead in the fourth, but UIW scored five of the next six to cut its deficit to two. After the Huskie sided out, the Cardinals scored the next three to knot the score at 13-13. HBU got a kill from Richey, but UIW scored the next four to take a 17-14. The Huskies tied the set at 18-18, but a pair of kills by Monday and one by Slaughter one again put the Cardinals ahead by three. HBU scored twice at set point, but UIW was able to hold the Huskies off for a 25-22 decision to send the match to the decisive fifth set.
HBU is the only Southland team not in action Saturday and will await the results of Saturday's matches to determine the five through eight seeds. Northwestern State (8-7) plays McNeese (7-8) and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (7-8) plays UIW (7-8), so only three of those four teams will advance. The top four seeds have already been secured by Stephen F. Austin, Central Arkansas, Sam Houston State and Abilene Christian, with the Huskies having a chance to be seeded anywhere between five and eight. The tournament begins Friday, Nov. 16, with the championship on Sunday, Nov. 18.
