HOUSTON – Sam Houston rallied past HBU, winning the fourth set to force a fifth, then went on to a 3-2 (25-22, 22-25, 24-26, 25-15, 15-10) victory in Southland Conference volleyball Thursday night in Sharp Gym.
 
Redshirt freshman outside hitter Reagan Leinen led the Huskies (3-6, 2-1 SLC) with 14 kills, while senior outside hitter Mikayla Vivens recorded a double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs. Junior middle blocker Ebonie Ballesteros nearly double-doubled with nine kills and 12 blocks, tied for the second-most in a five-set match in HBU history. Junior middle blocker Jada Allen also had nine kills with five blocks. Sophomore setter Ellie Wipf dished out 43 assists and had 11 digs, freshman defensive specialist Madeline McKinney led HBU with 24 digs and redshirt freshman libero Kaley Feris had 23 digs.
 
Ashley Lewis led SHSU (4-1, 4-1 SLC) with 27 kills to go along with 15 digs, while Breanne Chasse added 14 kills. Catherine Krieger had 11 kills and De'Janae Gilmore led the Bearkats with five blocks. Morgan Janda handed out 33 assists and had 21 digs, while Hannah Baker led SHSU defensively with 25 digs. Makensie Garner chipped in with 17 digs.
 
SHSU hit .170 for the match, while holding HBU to .122. The Bearkats outdug the Huskies, 95-88, and outaced them, 6-5. HBU outblocked SHSU, 17.0-9.0.
 
The Huskies return to action when they host McNeese Saturday at 6:30 p.m. in Sharp Gym, with the broadcast available on the Husky Sports Network.