DENTON, Texas – The Ouachita Volleyball team split its matches on the second day of the Denton Volleyfest, picking up its first sweep of the season in a 3-0 win over Illinois-Springfield and falling 3-1 to Augustana.
The first match of the day for Ouachita was against the Prairie Stars of the University of Illinois at Springfield. The match started with both teams trading small leads. After tying things up at 12-12, the Tigers started to find a rhythm and take control of the set. Ouachita put together a 7-1 run late to push out to a 23-15 lead. UIS was able to chip away at the Tigers' lead a little, but it was not enough as Ouachita held on to win the first set 25-21 on a kill from
Courtney Hanson.
The second set went almost exactly like the first; with both the Tigers and Prairie Stars trading small leads before Ouachita got things going. This time, the Tigers got hot in the form of an 8-0 run to take a 15-8 lead after trailing 8-7. Again, UIS kept things close, but the Tigers were able to hold on to their lead and take the second set by a score of 25-23.
The third set was all Tigers from the beginning, with Ouachita jumping out to a 5-1 lead. A 6-0 run made it 11-4 in favor of Ouachita. The Tigers did not allow Illinois-Springfield to score more than two points in a row, and even that only happened twice in the set. Ouachita dominated the third and final set of the match, winning by a final score of 25-13, earning their first sweep of the season.
Kayla Steinmeyer led the way offensively for the Tigers, racking up 12 kills with a .458 hitting percentage.
Haley Fairchild was next with 10 kills.
Courtney Hanson dished out 35 assists, leading both teams.
Avery Jauz led the defense with 15 digs, followed by
Kylie Kisgen with 11.
The second match of the day came against the Vikings of Augustana. The match started with the Vikings taking an early lead, and despite the Tigers clawing their way back to nearly tie things up, Augustana was able to hold on to win the first set by a score of 25-19.
The second set saw Ouachita jump out to a 5-0 lead. From there, Augustana clawed their way back to tie things up at 11-11. The rest of the set was back and forth, with neither team claiming more than a three-point lead. A late surge for the Tigers proved to be enough as Ouachita held on to edge the Vikings in set two by a score of 25-23.
Sets three and four were kept close, with Augustana holding on to win by scores of 25-23 and 25-21 respectively, giving the Vikings a 3-1 win in the match.
Steinmeyer recorded 12 kills for the second time today to lead Ouachita.
Hanson handed out 36 assists to lead the Tigers.
The Tiger defense was led by Jauz with 18 digs, again followed by Kisgen with 13.
The Tigers will be back in action tomorrow, September 9, against the University of Central Oklahoma at 7 p.m. in the final match of the 2023 Denton Volleyfest.
