HOUSTON, Texas – The Huskies notched wins in both double-header matches on day two of the Molly Howard-Gerwig Memorial Tournament at Sharp Gym.
In the opening match against Pennsylvania, HCU dominated the Quakers in straight sets (25-12, 25-19, 25-14) with a 42-29 kill ratio and controlled the net with 10 blocks to Penn's three. Junior
Audrey Pearce tallied a season-high 16 kills along with three blocks. Sophomore
Cassidy Drapela continued to show ascendancy adding 11 kills and four digs. Sophomore
Grace McLaughlin dished out 36 assists while senior
Kaley Feris led the back line with 16 digs.
The Quakers (0-2) were led by Zada Sanger with 11 kills and nine digs. Anna Shohfi dished out 20 assists while Elsa McDermott led Penn's defense with 17 digs.
HCU honored former assistant coach Molly-Howard Gerwig by providing the game ball to Molly's husband and current Arkansas State's Head Coach Brian Gerwig before their match against the Huskies. HCU (3-3) took down Arkansas State in four sets (25-17, 25-19, 20-25, 25-18) thanks to a strong hitting performance, .266% hitting percentage, compared to the Red Wolves, .143%.
After a back-and-forth start to the opening set, the Huskies scored seven straight points to take a, 13-7, lead forcing a timeout by the Red Wolves. With two rallies of three-straight points to end set one, the Huskies cruised to a 25-18 finish. In set two, HCU got off to a quick start scoring the first six points before Arkansas State fought their way back to a 15-13 game into the media timeout. The Huskies capped off the second set winning seven of the last nine points to win the set, 25-19. In the third set, HCU fought their way back from a 17-11 deficit to within three, 19-16, before the Red Wolves closed out the set, 25-20. In the deciding set, the Huskies rallied four straight points to break the, 8-8, tie starting with back-to-back kills by
Cassidy Drapela. After back-and-forth points by each team, the Huskies captured four straight points to cruise to a 25-18 victory.
The Huskies were led by junior
Sara Arroyo recording 16 kills and four digs while Drapela added 11 kills and three blocks. Pearce recorded a career-high 10 total blocks while McLaughlin recorded her first double-double of the year with 44 assists and 13 digs. Junior
Alexia Jones led the Huskies defensively with 14 digs.
The Red Wolves (4-1) were led by Kaitlin Whitlock with 16 kills and 10 digs. Erin Madigan dished out 36 assists while Sarah Martinez led the back line with 15 digs.
The Huskies will continue the Molly Howard-Gerwig Memorial Tournament on Saturday taking on UTRGV at 10 a.m. at Sharp Gym.
