ARKADELPHIA – The Ouachita volleyball team got back in the win column with a 3-1 win over the second-place Harding Bisons Monday night at the Sturgis Center.
Set Scores: 25-19, 23-25, 25-22, 25-19
The Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night match saw Ouachita (16-9, 7-6 GAC) strike first. The Tigers came out ready to play and used a 4-0 run to take an early 7-3 lead over second-place Harding (17-10, 10-3 GAC). The Bisons closed in on Ouachita's early lead and stayed within striking distance, but then the Tigers found another groove, this time for five points in a row to go up by eight. From there, Ouachita cruised to a 25-19 win in the opening set.
Harding took control early in set two with a 7-2 lead. Ouachita chipped away at the deficit to bring it back within a point. But then the Bisons pushed that lead back out to five points. The Tigers found a spark with a 5-0 run, cutting the deficit back to one point with the score 23-22. However, Harding held on to that lead and took set two 25-23.
Set three was back-and-forth for the first half, with neither side claiming more than a two-point lead. That was the case until Ouachita put together four points in a row to go up 19-16. Harding answered with a run of its own to retake the lead 21-20. Then it was back to the Tigers with three straight to go up 23-21. Ouachita closed out the set with back-to-back kills to win it 25-22 and take a 2-1 match lead.
Ouachita fell behind 4-0 to start the fourth set but clawed its way back to tie the set at 9-9. After trading the next few points, a 3-0 run put the Tigers up by two. Ouachita got in the driver's seat for the rest of the set, nearly doubling Harding's points, mostly thanks to a 4-0 run that pushed the Tigers' lead to seven late. The Tigers finished the Bisons off with a kill to win set four 25-19 and earn the 3-1 match victory.
This is now the second season in a row that the Tigers have taken down Harding at the Sturgis Center. This marks the first time since 1987 and 1988 that the Tigers have beaten Harding in back-to-back seasons.
Kailey Thedford led the offense with 18 kills.
Riley Braziel was next with 16, followed by
Emily Adams with 11 on a .423 hitting percentage.
Leah Gardner led the front row defense with a career-high tying six blocks.
Haley Fairchild was close behind with four.
Courtney Hanson led all setters with 49 assists, her 12
th game of the season with at least 40 assists.
The back row was led by
Avery Jauz with 24 digs.
Peyton Church was next with 15 and Braziel recorded 11 to round out the Tigers in double digits.
Braziel's 16 kills and 11 digs combine for the Decatur, Texas native's 10
th double-double of the season.
Ouachita currently sits tied for fifth place and one game out of third with just three games remaining in the regular season.
The Tigers will look to keep up the success when hit the road to take on the Cotton Blossoms of the University of Arkansas-Monticello on Thursday, November 7 in Monticello, Arkansas at 6 p.m.
