RUSSELLVILLE, Arkansas – The Ouachita volleyball team rallied from a two-set deficit to win three straight sets for a Great American Conference road victory over Arkansas Tech on Tuesday night at Tucker Coliseum.
Final set scores were 15-25, 25-27, 25-23, 25-18, and 15-9. The Tigers improve to 15-12 overall and 11-4 in GAC matches. Tech drops to 16-11 and 10-5. The win leaves Ouachita in sole possession of third place in the GAC with one match remaining in the regular season.
After struggling through the opening set, Ouachita came up just short in the second set, falling in extra rallies. The Tigers responded in the third set, holding off a late Arkansas Tech push to extend the match.
Ouachita carried that momentum into the fourth set, hitting .282 with 12 kills and just one attack error to force a deciding fifth set.
The Tigers took control early in the final frame and held on to secure the reverse sweep. Ouachita held Arkansas Tech to a .000 hitting percentage in the fifth set.
Leah Gardner led the Ouachita offense with a career-high 20 kills on 54 attacks, hitting .315 for the match. Sophie Henry added 14 kills and a team-high five blocks.
Kylie Kisgen led the defensive effort with a season-high 30 digs, while Mack Bidwell finished with 45 assists, 12 digs and two service aces. It was Bidwell's ninth match this season with at least 40 assists and her ninth double-double of the year.
The Tigers finish the regular season this Thursday, November 5 at home against cross-street rival Henderson State. First serve is set for 6 p.m. at the Sturgis Physical Education Center. The Tigers will recognize their six seniors following the match.
