JACKSON, Tennessee – The Ouachita volleyball team started the Union University Classic with a commanding 3-0 sweep over the Catawba College Indians Friday evening in Tennessee.
Set Scores: 25-14, 25-17, 25-18
The opening set between Ouachita and Catawba started close, with the two teams trading blows until the Tigers picked up steam with a 4-0 lead to push their early lead to 14-8. The Tigers found a groove after that short run, rattling off a 9-2 run to close out the set and win by 11 points with a score of 25-14.
Catawba jumped out to a 5-1 lead to start the second set. Ouachita got it together to catch back up and take a one-point lead a short time later. After the Indians tied the set at 8-8, the Tigers again found their rhythm, putting together a 10-2 run that gave Ouachita a 18-8 advantage. Catawba tried to get back into things with a late 5-1 run, but the Tigers held on to win set two comfortably by the score of 25-17 to take a 2-0 match lead.
The Tigers came out hot in set three, jumping out to a commanding 9-1 lead that started with a 7-0 run. It was that initial run that proved to be the difference as Catawba played close to even with Ouachita for the remainder of the set. After a late run by the Indians,
Emily Adams called game, closing out the set with a kill off an assist from
Mack Bidwell to win set three 25-18 and earn the Tigers' third sweep of the season.
Haley Fairchild and
Riley Braziel led the attack with eight kills each. Fairchild also racked up a .571 hitting percentage to go along with her eight kills. With their eight kills, Braziel reached 600 career kills and Fairchild hit the 400 career-kill mark.
Kailey Thedford was close behind with seven kills, followed by
Emily Adams and
Leah Gardner with six each.
Courtney Hanson led all players with 29 assists. Hanson added 14 kills for her fourth double-double of the season.
Back to the front row, Gardner led the team with five blocks. Adams and Hanson were next with two each.
Avery Jauz paced the back row, leading all defenders with 16 digs on the night, followed by Hanson with 14, and Braziel with 12 to round out the Tigers with double-digit digs. Juaz tied with
Kylie Kisgen for the team lead in aces with two each. Jauz's second ace was the 50
th of her career.
The Tigers will be back in action tomorrow, Saturday, September 14 with two matches. The first match is set for 9 a.m. against Edward Waters University, and the second is set for 7 p.m. against Union University to close out the Union University Classic in Jackson, Tennessee.
