STEPHENVILLE — Tarleton State Volleyball ended the Tarleton State Invitational with a 3-0 sweep over Northwestern State on Saturday afternoon in Wisdom Gym.
The Texans (3-3) were able to cap the weekend with a win, handing the Lady Demons (1-6) their third loss of the invitational. Tarleton State only needed three sets to claim the victory, (25-17, 25-16, 25-15).
Madison Rice-Lockett led the offensive attack with nine kills. She also added an ace and a pair of digs. Rice-Lockett notched a team-best 44 kills across weekend to earn All-Tournament honors.
Morgan Carter led the way tallying 11 digs, and Victoria Fontenot added a match-best three service aces. Megan Hodges led the setters with 18 total assists.
In the first set, the Lady Demons took an early 4-1 lead. Trailing, 7-3, the Texans switched the momentum of the set with a 6-0 run to take the lead for the first time. Back-to-back kills by Maidson Frank and Breannah Peterson followed by a Fontenot ace initiated the burst. Fontenot capped the rally with her second service of the frame. The Lady Demons responded but were never able to close the gap. A 3-0 Purple and White burst gave the Texans a four-point lead, to distance themselves further from Northwestern State. The two squads traded points to put the Texans in the lead, 17-20. Five consecutive points from the Purple and White to close the set, gave Tarleton State the first frame victory, 25-17.
The Texans came out blazing in the second stanza. Rice-Lockett started the frame with a pair of kills to get the Texans going in their 4-0 run to start. The Lady Demons quickly responded evening the score at four. The teams traded points resulting in five ties to tie the match once again at 11. Then, it was the Texans turn to turn the tables once again. Another kill from Rice-Lockett sparked a 3-0 run to give the Texans the lead for the final time of the stanza. Leading 15-12 at the media timeout, the Texans used a 5-0 run to open up to their largest lead of the frame, seven, 20-13. After a small response from the Lady Demons, the Texans thwarted any comeback chances with four consecutive points to take the second set victory, 25-16.
Northwestern State opened the third set with the lead. The Texans battled early on, but found themselves in a 10-6 hole in the early stages of the stanza. But, a 6-1 run fueled by a pair of kills from Taylynn Biggs put the Purple and White in front, 12-11. The Lady Demons strung together a pair of points to regain the lead, 13-12. Tarleton State took offense to that run, using a 6-0 burst to end the Lady Demons chances in the set push the needle closer to a Texan victory. Leading 18-15, Tarleton State notched a 7-0 dominant run to seal the third and final set victory, 25-15. LaNeah Lara posted a team-best five kills in the frame with one of them in the final run.
The Texans led in nearly every statistical category. Tarleton State posted 38 kills to Northwestern State’s 24. The Texans also led in aces, 7-4 and digs, 54-39.
Tarleton State will return to action next week at the Islanders Invitational with a pair of matches across Thursday and Friday. The Texans will take on the host, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Thursday night, followed by a Friday afternoon date against Sam Houston at 3 p.m.
Tarleton State Invitational All-Tournament Team
MVP – Madeleine Miller, New Mexico
Addison France, New Mexico
MaKinzie Taplin, PVAMU
Madison Rice-Lockett, Tarleton State
Jade Longlad, Northwestern State
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