No. 15 TexAnns knock off Heartland foes, push win streak to five

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Special to The Flash
TarletonSports.com

SAN ANTONIO (September 29, 2017) – Tarleton handled a pair of Heartland conference rivals in a Friday afternoon doubleheader at Bill Greehey Arena in San Antonio as the No. 15 TexAnns swept Lubbock Christian and defeated St. Mary’s in four.

Match 1: No. 15 Tarleton 3, Lubbock Christian 0
Tarleton wasted little time in moving on to its 11th win of the season as the No. 15 TexAnns disposed of Lubbock Christian in straight sets in the first match of a Friday afternoon doubleheader in San Antonio.

The set opened in a back-and-forth battle as the Lady Chaps and TexAnns were tied at 9-9 over the opening 18 points, but a kill from Alexis Applewhite turned the tide for Tarleton. Applewhite’s kill started a set-clinching 16-5 run by the TexAnns. Over the final 21 points, Tarleton didn’t allow the Lady Chaps to score consecutive points once down the stretch en route to a 25-14 win.

In the second set, Tarleton put together a dominant 18-3 run over the middle of the set, highlighted by nine straight points served up by Blanca Izquierdo, to take control of the set. The TexAnns outscored LCU 7-6 over the next 13 points to clinch the set and go up 2-0 in the match with a 25-11 victory.

The third set saw the TexAnns and Lady Chaps exchange the lead five times over the first 14 points before a kill fromAdriana Darthuy broke a 7-7 tie and gave the TexAnns the last lead they would need. The Darthuy kill started a 12-9 run to put Tarleton up 20-16 and force the Lady Chaps into a timeout.

Out of the break, Tarleton scored five of the last eight points to take the set 25-19 and the match in straight sets.

Hailey Roberts led all players with 16 kills on a .351 hitting percentage while Hannah McManus (9) and Darthuy (8) combined for 17 kills. As a team, Tarleton hit a season high .351 for the match.

Jordyn Keamo dished out a team high 32 assists while Izquierdo added 10. Michaela Rodriguez led the team with 13 digs.


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Match 2: No. 15 Tarleton 3, St. Mary’s 1
Tarleton pushed its winning streak to five with a four-set victory over St. Mary’s in the second game of Friday’s non-conference doubleheader at the Bill Greehey Arena in San Antonio.

Tarleton dropped its only set of the afternoon in the opening set when St. Mary’s scored seven unanswered points at the end of the opening set to reel off a 25-23 victory, but the TexAnns would come back with a vengeance in set two.

After the teams opened the second set in a 13-13 tie over the opening 26 points, Adriana Darthuy broke the tie with a kill shot to begin Tarleton’s own 7-0 run to take a 20-13 lead and force a Rattler timeout. Out of the break, Tarleton scored five of the final 10 points – capped off by a kill from Hailey Roberts – to take the set 25-18.

St. Mary’s opened the third set on a 12-9 run before Tarleton took control with arguably its most dominant run in any set of the season thus far. Hailey Roberts and Kiana Leveston combined for a block to start a 16-2 run over the final 18 points, capped off by a Leveston ace, to deliver a 25-14 victory and a 2-1 lead in the match.

The TexAnns kept their foot on the gas pedal in the fourth set as Tarleton dominated the final game of the match with a 22-9 run over the opening 31 points. The TexAnn defense didn’t allow St. Mary’s to score consecutive points until the 33rd point of the match as Tarleton cruised to a 25-13 win in the set and a 3-1 win in the match.

Darthuy led the TexAnns with 13 kills on a .407 hitting percentage while McManus (9) and Roberts (8) combined for 17 kills. Jordyn Keamo boasted a double-double performance with 22 assists and 12 digs while Blanca Izquierdo added 17 assists. Adrianna Knutson led the team with 13 digs.

Tarleton will return to action tomorrow at 2 p.m. when the TexAnns head to Kingsville in a return to Lone Star Conference action.


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