ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – A quartet of Ouachita volleyball players finished with double-digit kills as Ouachita defeated Southern Nazarene 3-1 on Friday night.
Paige Williams (Springdale, Ark.) led the offensive attack with 14 kills on the night, followed by
Adrianna Nolly (Denton, Texas) 13 kills, 5 total blocks,
Katie Camp (Plano, Texas) contributed 12 kills and three service aces and
Tabatha Huckabee (North Richland Hills, Texas) who finished with 11 kills on the night.
Hero Sports player of the week
Stormi Leonard (Decatur, Texas) collected 48 assists in the Tigers win. The senior now has nine games this season in which she has crossed the 40 assists threshold. Meanwhile, sophomore libero
Julianna Mack (Little Rock, Ark.) produced 36 digs, it was just her second game of the season with 30 or more scoops in a match.
On the Southern Nazarene (11-10, 3-3 GAC) side of things, Megan Ellis led the team in kills with14, followed by Kayla Thomas and Grace Miracle who each produced double-digit kills in the contest. Setter Kylie Smith finished the night with a double-double, 41 assists and 10 digs.
Despite being down 6-1 in the early going of the opening frame, Ouachita still hit a game high .370 as a group. After calling a timeout down by five in the opening moments of the first, the Tigers responded to the adversity with three consecutive points.
Trailing 9-8 in the opening set, Camp produced her second kill of the night and ignited a 6-0 run by Ouachita. The Tigers were not out of harms way yet as the Crimson Storm quietly whittled their way back into the set. At 22-20 it appeared that Southern Nazarene may be on the verge of tying the match up, but a pair of Williams kills ensured that the Tigers would take the opening frame.
The second set was a back-and-forth affair between the two squads as Ouachita jumped out to an early 7-3 lead. At 17-13 Ouachita had complete control of the set but three consecutive kills by Southern Nazarene put the Crimson Storm right back in the match. Southern Nazarene went on a late 5-0 to give themselves match point at 24-21. Ouachita proved that they were resilient and fought back with three consecutive points to tie the game at 24. A few moments later the Crimson Storm took the second set 28-26.
In the third set both teams battled for every point possible. Every time one team went on a run the other team countered with a run of their own. The pivotal moment of the set came when Southern Nazarene held a 20-16 edge over the Tigers. Head volleyball coach Allison Firzzell-Kizer called timeout to interject some life into her team. Ouachita responded with a 4-0 run to tie the set at 20. The Tigers carried the momentum to a 25-22 third set victory. The 9-2 run by the Tigers was the biggest momentum shifter of the night between the two squads.
Ouachita turned on the offense again in the fourth set hitting .351 as a team. The two teams fought to a stalemate for the majority of the fourth frame. Ouachita held a 10-9 lead and promptly shut the door on Southern Nazarene the rest of the match. The Tigers finished the set on a 15-4 run and snapped a three game conference losing streak in the process.
The Tigers will have a night to enjoy the win as Oklahoma Baptist comes to town tomorrow evening at 4 p.m. The volleyball match will conclude a fun eventful Homecoming for Ouachita Baptist.
