LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (10/30/20) – Another stout defensive performance at the net led by Kendahl Davenport's nine blocks propelled Arkansas State past in-state rival Little Rock by a 3-1 score on Friday night at the Jack Stephens Center.
A-State (7-5, 7-5 Sun Belt Conference) took an early two-set lead in the match and held off the host Trojans (1-12, 1-11 SBC), holding Little Rock to an attack percentage of just .105 to go along with 11 total blocks in the victory. With the win, the Red Wolves improved their winning streak in Little Rock to six dating back to 2014.
Madison Brown once again led the pack in kills with 17 and Josie Stanford added 11. Paulina Sobolewska and Davenport each added seven with Sobolewska notching 13 digs. Defensively, seven different players factored into A-State's 11 blocks, including five with two or more. Friday marks the 11th time this season that the NCAA's top blocking squad has tallied double-digit blocks.
Lauren Musante dished out a match-high 31 assists, while Tatum Ticknor led with 20 digs and two aces. As a team, the Red Wolves served six aces – the most since serving nine on Oct. 9 versus ULM.
Laura Jansen led all players with 19 kills and 11 digs. Alyssa Nayar also posted a double-double for the Trojans with 21 assists and 11 digs. Leigh Maher collected 24 digs, while Zanobia Willis led Little Rock with seven blocks.
SET 1 – A-State 25-20
The match began with neither team seizing momentum in the opening set, with 13 ties and six lead changes until the media timeout, where Little Rock led 15-14. Out of the timeout, A-State went on a 5-0 run to take control with a 19-15 lead that it would not relinquish, holding off the Trojans for a 25-20 victory in set 1. Ticknor concluded the frame with an ace.
Brown notched seven kills on 14 attacks in the opening set along with five digs, with Musante handing out 13 assists. Davenport was the top blocker with two blocks. As a team, A-State notched a .317 attack percentage to open the match.
SET 2 – A-State 25-15
Arkansas State kept the momentum going into the second set, surging out to an early 9-2 lead and led by as much as eight until Little Rock trimmed it to five at 12-7. After the Red Wolves called a timeout, the Trojans managed to cut the deficit to four at 16-12. From there, A-State held full control, taking seven of the next nine points on multiple attack errors to lead 23-14. After a service error made it 23-15, Brown's 11th kill and an ace by Julianna Cramer ended the second set and gave the Scarlet and Black a 2-0 lead in the match.
Defensively, the Red Wolves held Little Rock to a sub-zero attack percentage of -.031 in the second set. Brown led offensively with four more kills while Musante notched eight assists.
SET 3 – Little Rock 25-23
A-State took the first two points of the third set, but Little Rock then claimed the lead that ballooned to 11-5. The Red Wolves continued to claw back and keep it close. After the Trojans led 20-13, A-State got kills by Josie Stanford and Davenport along with a double-touch by Little Rock to cut it to 20-16. A kill by Macey Putt and block by Brianna Hollingshed then trimmed the deficit to 23-21 and forced the Trojans to call a timeout. Out of the timeout, Janae Thurston notched a kill to give Little Rock set point up 24-21, but A-State saved two set points on a kill and ace by Brown to make it 24-23. Jansen then ended the set on a kill to lead the Trojans to a 25-23 third-set decision.
SET 4 – A-State 25-17
A-State took an early 3-2 lead in the fourth set, and would surge out to a 12-4 advantage on multiple blocks and attack errors by the Trojans. A 5-1 run by Little Rock cut it to 15-12, but the Scarlet and Black responded with a 4-0 stretch to lead 19-12, including an ace by Ticknor. The Trojans cut A-State's lead down to 20-16, but the Red Wolves would take five of the last six points in the set to take the fourth 25-17 and win the match 3-1.
Brown closed out the night with four more kills with Cramer supplying six of her 11 assists. Davenport was a stalwart at the net, tallying five of her nine kills in the match's final frame and helping her team hold the Trojans to an attack percentage of -.093 in the set.
A-State returns to action for the series finale, taking on the Trojans at 1 p.m. inside the Jack Stephens Center. The Halloween match – A-State's first since 2014 – will be broadcasted on ESPN+ and live stats can be viewed at AStateStats.com.
Fans can follow the team on Twitter (@AStateVB) and Instagram (astatevb) along with liking the Arkansas State University Volleyball page on Facebook for the latest news and updates regarding the team.
