NACOGDOCHES, Texas (12/6/24) – Arkansas State volleyball's season continued Friday night, as it topped Stephen F. Austin 3-2 (19-25, 25-17, 25-16, 16-25, 15-12) inside Shelton Gym to advance to the Great 8 of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship.
The Red Wolves (28-5) improved to 7-1 this season in five-setters and handed the Ladyjacks (24-9) just their second loss at home this year and the second in three seasons. A-State has won multiple postseason matches for the first time since a 2-2 mark in the 1993 NIVC.
A-State limited the hosts to a .193 mark on the attack, while knocking down 12 blocks – seven by Daedrianna Cail, who also had a team-leading 14 kills. Kaitlin Whitlock added 11 kills and 19 digs with three aces, while Devyn Lewis had 10 kills and three blocks (2 solo). Grace Wiley tallied nine kills and five blocks.
Erin Madigan joined Whitlock with a double-double, tallying 33 assists and 11 digs. Sarah Martinez led all players with 20 digs in the match.
SFA took control in the opening set, surging ahead 11-2 before A-State later pulled within four. A kill by Haley Glunz saved a set point at 24-19, but SFA's Jordan Henderson scored on a block to give the Ladyjacks a 1-0 lead in the match.
After allowing a .406 mark in the first set, A-State's defense caught fire in the second set, holding SFA to just .065. An 8-1 run midway through the frame gave the Scarlet and Black a 23-16 advantage following a Cail kill. The Red Wolves evened the match three points later after a pair of SFA miscues.
The Red Wolves held the Ladyjacks to a .128 mark in the third set and used a 5-1 run to take the lead at 11-6. Glunz served an ace to put A-State first to 20, and then Cail later clinched the set victory with a kill, handing the Red Wolves a 2-1 lead in the contest.
Stephen F. Austin would not go away quietly on its home court, using a 7-0 run to take a lead in the fourth set that it would not relinquish en route to winning 25-16 and forcing a fifth set.
A 5-1 run gave the Red Wolves a 6-3 lead in the fifth set, forcing an SFA timeout after a block by Lewis. SFA committed a service error to make it 10-6 before it bounced back with two straight points to cut it to two. The Ladyjacks knotted up the set at 11-all, but a kill and an ace by Madigan put A-State back ahead 13-11. Cail and Wiley sealed the victory three points later with a block.
NEXT UP
Arkansas State continues its season in the NIVC Great 8, taking on the winner of the match between Northern Colorado and Georgia Southern held Saturday in Statesboro, Ga. Match date, time and location are to be determined.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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