ARKADELPHIA – The Ouachita volleyball team closed out the 2024 Reddie Tiger Invitational with two wins: a sweep against Montevallo University, and a 3-1 victory over McKendree University Saturday afternoon at the Sturgis Physical Education Center.
Match One: Ouachita 3, Montevallo 0
It took a few points for Ouachita to find its rhythm against Montevallo in the third match of the weekend as the two teams traded leads to start the first set. But once the Tigers found their groove, they took off. An 8-1 Tiger run gave Ouachita a six-point lead over the Falcons with the score of 12-6. From there, the Tigers kept their foot on the gas; as a team, the Tigers hit .520 in the first set. A 6-0 run pushed the Ouachita lead to double digits and the Tigers cruised to a 25-13 set one win over Montevallo.
Montevallo came out ready in set number two, taking an early lead off a 6-point run. The Tigers came together to respond with a run of their own to retake the lead from the Falcons 11-10. The two purple teams traded points over most of the set, with Montevallo taking a two-point lead late with the score of 23-21. But Ouachita again found a spark and rattled off four straight points to comeback and win the set 25-23 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Ouachita stayed hot in set number three, quickly jumping out to a 12-5 lead after a 6-0 run. The Tigers continued to expand their lead and did not allow Montevallo to score consecutive points throughout the entire set. A late 7-0 Ouachita run pushed the lead to double-digits as the Tigers controlled the set, winning handily 25-10 to earn their second sweep of the season.
Riley Braziel led all scorers with 13 kills on a .357 hitting percentage.
Leah Gardner was next with seven kills and a .636 hitting percentage, followed by
Eryn Dawson and
Kailey Thedford with five kills each.
Courtney Hanson led all players with 32 assists and two aces.
Avery Jauz led the back row with 13 digs, followed by Hanson with eight. Dawson led the front row with three blocks,
Emily Adams as next with two.
Match Two: Ouachita 3, McKendree 1
Ouachita game out of the gate swinging against McKendree. After the Bearcats scored the opening point, the Tigers put the hammer down, jumping out to an 8-1 lead that then ballooned into a 17-4 lead at the end of a 7-0 Ouachita run. The Tigers stayed on the attack, racking up 14 kills on a .435 hitting percentage en route to a commanding 18-point, 25-7 win in set one.
The second set started closer than the first, with the Tigers and Bearcats trading points until an 8-2 run gave Ouachita an eight-point advantage. Ouachita kept the pace, tallying a .367 hitting percentage to cruise to a 25-15 win in set number two and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
After a close start in the third set, it looked like the Tigers were ready to run away with things again after a 7-1 Ouachita run, but something woke up McKendree and the Bearcats stormed back with a run of their own to retake the lead 16-15. From there, it was back and forth between the two purple-clad teams before McKendree called game in extra points to win set three 26-24 and force a fourth set.
The Tigers took an early lead in set four and managed to keep the Bearcats at bay for the majority of the set, partily thanks to a 9-2 run that gave Ouachita an eight-point lead late. However, McKendree wasn't ready to give up yet, as the Bearcats chipped away at the Tiger lead, closing the gap to within two points with the score of 22-20. Ouachita was ready to close this match out, taking three of the last four points on kills to win set four by the score of 25-21, securing the 3-1 victory.
Kailey Thedford found herself at the top of the kills list for the second night in a row, racking up 14 in the win to lead all scorers.
Emily Adams was close behind with 12, followed by
Leah Gardner with 10 to round out the Tigers with double-digit kills. Gardner also led the team in blocks with two. With her 12 kills, Adams reached the 600 career-kill mark.
Courtney Hanson handed out 36 assists, marking her third straight game with 30-plus assists. Hanson also recorded 12 digs for her third double-double of the season. Hanson tied with
Kylie Kisgen for the match lead in aces with two each.
Avery Jauz again paced the back row defense with 16 digs and was followed by Hanson with 12 and
Riley Braziel with 11.
The Tigers close the book on the 2024 Reddie-Tiger Invitational with a 3-1 weekend record, after sweeps of Missouri S&T and Montevallo and the 3-1 win over McKendree. The 3-1 start is the best four-game start for the Tigers since the 2018 season, which saw the Tigers win their first nine games of the year.
Riley Braziel and
Courtney Hanson were named to the All-Tournament Team for their performances over the weekend.
Ouachita has another invitational lined up this coming weekend in Jackson, Tennessee. The Tigers are set to compete in the 2024 Union University Classic and will open the classic against Catawba University on Friday, September 13 at 5 p.m. Ouachita will play two more matches on Saturday, one against Edward Waters University and one against Union University.
