2011 GAC VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP HOME PAGE
SOUTHERN ARKANSAS 3, SOUTHEASTERN OKLAHOMA STATE 1
22-25, 25-18, 25-20, 25-19
No. 6 seed Southern Arkansas pulled off an upset in the opening match of the inaugural Great American Conference Volleyball Championship Tournament by defeating No. 3 seed Southeastern Oklahoma State in four sets.
The Savage Storm (14-19) won the opening set behind GAC Player of the Year Lunden Azuara’s six kills and a .250 hitting percentage as a team, but the Lady Muleriders (17-15) swept through the next three sets to capture the victory, highlighted by a .484 percentage in the second set.
SAU had three players reach double-digits in kills, led by Becca Pate and Jordan White, both of which totaled 15 kills. White led the match with a .444 hitting percentage after only committing three errors on 27 attempts to go along with her kill total. Pate chipped on defense for SAU with 11 digs. Courtney Smith and Lindsey Wilcox also reached the double-digit mark in kills with 13 and 10, respectively.
Kahli Remy led the Lady Muleriders from the back row with a match-high 20 digs. Ashlie Arnold tallied a double-double of 49 assists and 11 digs.
Southeastern was led by Azuara’s total of 20 kills on 54 attempts with only six errors for a final .259 percentage. She also had 10 digs.
Southern Arkansas advances to Saturday’s semi-final match between the winner of the Southwestern Oklahoma State-Harding match, which started at 2:45 p.m. on Friday.
All matches of the GAC Volleyball Championship can be viewed for free at greatamericanconference.com. Live stats and photos are also available through links on the tournament home page.
HARDING 3, SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE 0
25-20, 25-13, 25-16
No. 2 seed Harding swept past No. 7 seed Southwestern Oklahoma State in the second match of the opening round of the GAC Volleyball Championship to advance into the semi-finals against No. 6 seed Southern Arkansas on Saturday at noon.
In the win over SWOSU (9-19), the Lady Bisons (24-7) collected 34 kills and took advantage of a negative hitting percentage (-.015) by their opponent to capture the sweep.
First Team All-GAC selection Mollie Arnold and Alyssa Short led the Lady Bisons with eight kills each. Arnold added 15 digs to her totals for a double-double, while Short helped out at the net with three block assists.
HU totaled nine blocks in the win, led by Alex Smith’s total of six, including two of the solo variety.
HU’s Amber Parker collected a match-high 22 digs on the back row.
SWOSU was led by Stephanie Parker, who totaled nine kills and nine digs. All-GAC second team honoree Sladjana Smiljanic paced the Bulldog defense with 19 digs.
ARKANSAS TECH 3, ARKANSAS-MONTICELLO 0
25-14, 25-15, 25-22
Host team and No. 1 seed Arkansas Tech extended its home court winning streak to 23 consecutive victories with a 3-0 sweep of No. 8 seed Arkansas-Monticello in the opening round of the GAC Volleyball Championship.
It was also ATU’s 16-consecutive victory of the season overall. The Golden Suns improved to 33-2 overall, while the Cotton Blossoms dropped to 7-23.
The Golden Suns spread the wealth in their victory with no player reaching double-digits in kills. All-GAC first team honoree Laura Farney led her team with nine kills and 11 digs. Sara Motsinger, Kelly O’Malley and Thabata Galvao all recorded seven kils throughout the contest.
In addition to Farney’s team-high in digs, Taylor Brown, Marcela Mascarenhas and Brennae Benda also had chipped with 10 each.
Arkansas-Monticello was led by All-GAC honorable mention Amy Kleypas, who totaled 12 kills and nine digs. Allison Beardsley collected a match-high 13 digs to pace the UAM defense.
Arkansas Tech advances to play either East Central or Ouachita Baptist in the semi-finals on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
EAST CENTRAL 3, OUACHITA BAPTIST 1
27-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-16
No. 5 seed East Central defeated No. 4 seed Ouachita Baptist 3-1 in the final opening round match of the GAC Volleyball Championship Tournament to become the only GAC member from the state of Oklahoma to remain in the bracket for Saturday’s semi-finals.
ECU (14-17) took the first set in extra points, collecting their best set of the match in terms of hitting percentage at .286 after tallying 17 kills and only three errors on 49 attempts.
OBU (18-13) fired back in the second set with a two-point win, but that would be the last set the Lady Tigers would have any luck on offense. ECU took advantage of a .000 hitting percentage by OBU in the third set and a -.079 percentage in the fourth set to capture the victory and extend its season at least one more match.
ECU’s Noelle Cope totaled a match-high 22 kills and a .395 hitting percentage after only committing five errors on 43 attempts. She also had 11 digs and one block.
Danielle Essix also reached double-digits for ECU with 10 kills and 12 digs. Megan Kimak and Shayla May paced the ECU defense with 18 and 16 digs, respectively.
OBU was led by Megan Askew and Kelsi Bodine, who had 12 and 11 kills, respectively. All-GAC first team honoree Allison Frizell collected a match-high 20 digs.
East Central advances into the semi-finals of the GAC Volleyball Championship Tournament, and will face host team and No. 1 seed Arkansas Tech on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The inaugural GAC championship match is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.