STEPHENVILLE – Texan Volleyball defeated California Baptist 3-1 (25-22, 25-12, 26-24, 25-20). The Texans are now 5-2 in conference play and 11-8 overall.
LaNeah Lara and Madison Rice-Lockett led the Texans’ offense with 15 kills each, while Madison Frank added 11. Emma Burke contributed eight kills and six blocks, and Breannah Peterson tallied seven kills and six blocks to round out a balanced Tarleton State’s attack.
Megan Hodges distributed the ball well to set up the Texan attack with 32 assists, a season-high for the senior. She also tallied 11 digs for her seventh double-double of the season. Teya Nguyen also contributed 19 assists to the Texan offense. Morgan Carter led the Texans backrow with 14 digs.
Tarleton came out strong to open the match, jumping ahead 2–0 behind a kill from Lara and a service ace by Hodges. After trading points early, the Texans and Lancers battled through several ties, with Lara and Rice-Lockett leading the Tarleton State offense. The Texans found rhythm midway through the set as Burke and Peterson added key kills to keep the momentum. Tarleton State’s defense stepped up with multiple block assists from Burke and Peterson, pushing the Texans ahead 19–18. Following a CBU timeout, Tarleton State continued to apply pressure at the net and from the service line, highlighted by a timely ace from Burke that gave the Texans a late cushion. Lara sealed the set with her sixth kill, securing the 25–22 win and a 1–0 match lead.
Tarleton State carried its momentum into the second set, opening with a quick kill from Frank and capitalizing on a CBU attack error to take an early 2–0 lead. The Texans kept the pressure on behind kills from Rice-Lockett and Peterson, extending their advantage to 5–2. A service ace from Rice-Lockett and steady setting from Hodges helped Tarleton State maintain control as the Texans surged ahead 8–4. After back-to-back blocks from Taylynn Biggs and Frank, Tarleton State forced a CBU timeout with a commanding 11–5 lead. Hodges followed the break with a service ace, while Burke and Rice-Lockett teamed up for key kills to keep the Texans rolling. The Lancers struggled to find rhythm against Tarleton State’s attack and strong net play, as the Texans’ front line, led by Burke, Peterson, and Frank dominated the middle. Tarleton State closed the set in dominant fashion with Lara taking over offensively, recording three consecutive kills to finish it off. The Texans sealed the frame 25–12 to take a 2–0 lead.
The Texans opened the third set on fire, racing out to a 5–0 lead with kills from Lara and Frank, along with a string of CBU attack errors. Tarleton State continued to roll behind smooth setting from Hodges and back-to-back kills from Rice-Lockett, forcing an early CBU timeout up 10–4. Out of the break, California Baptist began to chip away, using strong net play from Emery DeJong to slow Tarleton State’s momentum. The Lancers went on a 6–1 run to close the gap to 10–9 before Tarleton responded with kills from Frank and Rice-Lockett. As the set went on, both sides traded points in a tense back-and-forth battle. The Texans’ defense came up big with key blocks from Burke and Peterson, helping Tarleton State regain a slim 21–19 lead. However, CBU answered with three straight points to tie the set at 23–23. After a Tarleton State timeout, Lara’s kill evened the score at 24–24, but the Lancers capitalized on a late Tarleton State attack error to take the set 26–24 and cut the Texans’ match lead to 2–1.
Tarleton State opened the fourth set with a strong kill from Lara, and after early back-and-forth points, Frank and Burke added kills to keep it tied 4–4. Rice-Lockett scored on two kills off Hodges set to push the Texans slightly ahead at 7–6. California Baptist responded briefly, but Carter served an ace to even the score at 10–10. Tarleton State then went on a run with three straight kills from Burke and Frank, forcing a Lancer timeout at 14–12. Peterson followed with a strong kill out of the middle to extend the lead to 16–13, while CBU stayed close with points from DeJong. Late in the set, Rice-Lockett came up with a critical block, and Lara found the back corner to make it 21–18. After CBU narrowed the gap, Frank delivered a key kill to stay ahead, and Burke closed out the set with a final kill off a Nguyen set, giving Tarleton State a 25–22 win and the 3–1 match victory.
The Texans will return to Wisdom Gym on Thursday to take on Utah Valley for “Throwback Thursday” at 6 PM.
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