Volleyball drops Pair of Saturday Non-Conference Games in McMurry
ABILENE, Texas – The University of Dallas volleyball team (13-19) closed out its regular season with two setbacks in non-conference action on Saturday in the McMurry University Tournament. After battling Howard Payne University (11-14) in a four set loss, the Crusaders would get swept in three sets to the host school McMurry.
MATCH VS. HOWARD PAYNE UNIVERSITY
Set Scores: L 3-1 | (25-21, 16-25, 20-25, 23-25)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Crusaders prevailed in the early set, but were unable to maintain their momentum throughout the first match of the afternoon. Howard Payne earned the first point before Elizabeth Smith (Broken Arrow, Okla.) posted a kill to get Jessie Koster (Sherwood, Ore.) on serve. From there, the Crusaders scored the next three points to cap an early 4-1 edge. The Yellow Jackets countered with three straight to knot the score back up.
An eventual 14-3 run for UD surged the navy and white ahead and gave the team control of the opening frame. At one point the Crusaders led a 20-11, which was capped on a 5-0 run. Howard Payne earned a point on a service error to stop the run, but three more points for UD extended the margin to its largest distance of 11. Despite a late scramble by HPU, the first set went to the Crusaders.
In the second set, Dallas erased a 3-1 deficit to tie the score at 3-all. Mary Scholz (Fallon, Nev.) had recorded the first two UD points on kills. The opposition was too much from that juncture, as Howard Payne went on a 5-0 point streak and built the advantage throughout.
A Scholz kill started the third set and the teams exchanged points a couple times before a 7-1 scoring swing changed the tide of the frame in favor of the Yellow Jackets. The final set was decided by two points, as Dallas led slightly throughout the span. Ahead 19-15, Howard Payne registered four straight points and eventually nine of the next 10 points. Scholz had a kill that split the two runs, and the Crusaders clawed back with three straight while facing set point. HPU's Kailey Doering secured the opponent's triumph on a kill.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- Scholz shattered a personal-high 21 kills and eclipsed 20 for the first time in her collegiate career. She registered a .298 (21-57) kill percentage.
- Diana Hassink (Tulsa, Okla.) earned a double-double with 10 kills and 18 digs. Kyndal Miller (Crockett, Texas) added seven kills.
- Scholz and Hassink combined for 31 of UD's 50 kills.
- Koster led the defense with 32 digs. Smith notched her 10th double-double this year with 38 assists and 11 digs.
- McMurry had a trio of double-digit performances in kills. That group was led by Zhartezia Bradley (17), followed by Doering (13), and rounded out by Shelbie Harry (10). Bradley hit a .424 (17-33) kill percentage clip.
- Cheyanne Lovelady set 37 assists. Maddie Hatzold blocked six balls – all block assists – and the team had 18.
MATCH VS. MCMURRY UNIVERSITY
Set Scores: L 3-0 | (14-25, 18-25, 13-25)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Dallas was downed on the home team's floor later on in the afternoon. The first set began in a back-and-forth exchange of points. A 5-1 run nipped the last lead of the frame for the guests and after a kill by Hassink brought the deficit to 11-9; McMurry broke away on a string of seven points in a row.
The middle set was another tight score in favor of the Crusaders in the early stages. However, after a 4-2 edge was reduced and the score flipped as part of a Warhawks' 4-0 run, the momentum changed the remainder of the way. A ball handling error put Dallas down 7-6, but five more points in a row sparked a 7-2 scoring swing and gave the Maroon control of the set 2-0.
Koster etched a kill to tie the score for the lone time in what would be the final set, because McMurry responded on a 6-0 run to start with a six-point edge. The Crusaders would get within three on a few occasions in the middle of the frame, but a 7-2 run extended the deficit to 19-12.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- Hassink and and Scholz were the top scorers offensively again, combining for 20 of the team's 31 in the contest. Hassink earned another double-double with a game-high 11 kills and 13 digs.
- Koster led the defense with 24 digs, as her and Hassink were only players for the guests to break double-digits in that category.
- Koster etched her names in the school record books again by breaking her own single-season digs record last year. The senior libero now has 806 and improved her career record to 2,832.
- Dallas narrowly edged the Warhawks in digs 60-58.
- Smith posted 21 assists.
- Justice McGowan for McMurry led her team in kills with nine. Madison Fatheree and Emarie James contributed 12 assists apiece.
- Lauren Heathcote defended with seven blocks, including six block assists. The team had 18 block assists and 21 overall.
UP NEXT
Dallas prepares for the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Tournament hosted by Centenary College in Shreveport, Louisiana. The dates are November 4-5, and the Crusaders start as the fifth seed versus the fourth-seeded Austin College at 10:30 a.m.
Complete information can be found here.