TUCSON, Ariz. (12/11/24) – A remarkable season for Arkansas State volleyball concluded Thursday inside the McKale Memorial Center, as the Red Wolves dropped a 3-2 (25-20, 25-17, 16-25, 20-25, 13-15) decision to Northern Colorado in the NIVC Great 8.
The Red Wolves (28-6) knocked down 12 blocks, as their defense reigned supreme in the first two sets, but the Bears (28-7) battled back to extend the match and ultimately forced a decisive fifth set.
A-State hit .116 in the match while UNC owned a .185 clip. Kaitlin Whitlock recorded a team-high nine kills, while Grace Wiley had eight. Daedrianna Cail recorded tallied seven kills to go along with eight blocks. Sarah Martinez led all players with 17 digs in her final match as a Red Wolf.
The Red Wolves' defense led the way in the opening set, holding the Bears to just .091. Cail recorded four kills on as many swings while being involved on three blocks. A-State used a 10-3 run to erase a 7-5 deficit and led by as much as five to take the first set 25-20.
A-State once again overcame an early UNC lead in the second set, this time using a 9-1 swing to take a 16-10 lead. After the Bears pulled within three, they only scored three points the rest of the frame, as the Scarlet and Black took the set 25-17 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Northern Colorado seized momentum at the start of the third set, surging to a 9-2 lead. The Bears led by as much as 10 following a kill by Alayna Tessena (12 kills) that made it 23-13. Isabel Bennett (10 kills) later extended the match with a kill, ending the 25-16 set victory for UNC.
Gabi Placide served one of her two aces to give the Bears an early 7-3 lead in the fourth set before A-State pulled within two at 11-9 on a kill by Addison Collum. Placide served another ace to put UNC at the 20-point mark. A kill by Tessena gave UNC a 23-16 lead, but the Red Wolves battled back to within three with a four-point swing capped by a Whitlock kill. A kill by setter Syd Cole, followed by a block by Cole and Bennett clinched the fourth set and sent the match into a fifth and final stanza.
The Bears once again surged to an early lead, winning eight of the first 10 points in the fifth set. A-State clawed back to make it 10-8 on a kill by Wiley, and later tied it at 12 on a kill by Erin Madigan. After taking a timeout, Northern Colorado went on to clinch the match with three of the final four points.
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