ABILENE – Tarleton State Volleyball swept in-conference rival Abilene Christian and punched its ticket to the UAC Tournament with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-23, 29-27) victory over the Wildcats on Thursday at Moody Coliseum.
Tarleton State (11-5, 7-6 UAC) clinched a bid to the conference tournament for the second straight season thanks to its win over Abilene Christian (17-8, 9-4 UAC) and a loss from Little Rock. It is the third time in the Division I era the Texans have qualified for the conference tournament.
The Texans won their fifth straight match over the Wildcats, sweeping three straight. It is the first sweep for Tarleton State in Abilene since 2021.
Fifth year outside hitter LaNeah Lara led the Texans with a season-high 18 kills off a .452 attack percentage. Fifth year outside hitter/opposite Madison Rice-Locket posted her seventh double-double of the season with 10 kills and 10 digs while setters Kingsley Minus (27) and Alexis Massey (17) once again produced double-digit assists.
Libero Leddy Rae Guinn had her sixth straight match with 20+ digs with another 20-dig match. She is the first Texan in the Division I era to accomplish that feat. Guinn is also the first Texan in the last decade to have a streak of six straight matches with at least 20 digs.
An early 3-0 ACU run and being without middle blocker Alyssa Dinh and setter Peyton Fadal didn’t slow the Texans down. After answering with four straight points, the Texans scored three out of the next four points to take a 12-8 lead early in the first set. Two kills from senior opposite Breannah Peterson and a kill from freshman middle blocker Onita Davis capped off another 4-0 scoring run to put the Texans up by five.
ACU, however, tied it up at 18 thanks to obtaining six of the next seven points. Tarleton State’s response was immediate, getting back-to-back kills to go with a service ace from junior defensive specialist Alexa Earle. Tarleton State ended the first set on a 4-0 scoring run and hit .371 to take the opening frame 25-22.
Being tied 8-8 in the second set, the Texans took charge with a kill from Davis and two straight kills from Lara to spark a run. After getting four of the next five points, Tarleton State went on another 3-0 scoring run to take a 20-13 advantage.
Six straight points from ACU later in the second set allowed the Wildcats to cut the deficit to one. Another kill from Lara stopped the ACU run before the Wildcats tied it again at 23. Lara’s kill to make it a set point led to the Texans obtaining the next point needed to clinch the second set 25-23.
The Texans took command early in the third frame, jumping out in front 8-2. A 3-0 scoring run by ACU ignited four straight points from the Texans to keep the lead at bay. Four straight points from ACU made it a two-point set, with the Wildcats eventually making it a set point thanks to a late 5-0 scoring run.
The Texans got the tying point needed to extend the set and even with ACU getting another set point, Tarleton State wouldn’t relinquish. Peterson tied it on two separate occasions, with her kill off the assist from Minus making it 27-27. Lara’s kill reversed the advantage before the Texans forced an ACU attack error to clinch the sweep.
Tarleton State returns to Wisdom Gym on Saturday at 1 p.m. against Little Rock. Attendees who stay for the whole volleyball match will receive exclusive access to a VIP tailgate for the Tarleton State Football game later that day. Tickets start at just $10 and can be purchased online here.
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