Stephen F. Austin
North Texas
SFA Withstands Mean Green
10/31/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 31, 2012
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks played a trio of close sets, but managed to pull out a non-conference 3-0 (25-23, 25-23, 28-26) win over North Texas on Wednesday night at Shelton Gym.
Jill Ivy was the only Ladyjack (19-9) to finish in double figure kills with 11 kills, but four Ladyjacks finished in double-figure digs, led by Madison Hanlan's 19. More importantly, SFA outblocked the Mean Green (20-11) 9-3, led by five from redshirt freshman Jacque Allen.
The win is the fourth in the last six years over North Texas, a former Southland Conference member, winless in Nacogdoches since 1995.
Allen added nine kills, as did Tori Bates in helping SFA hit .095 for the match, a mark that bettered the .065 clip from the Mean Green who was led by Carnae Dillard's 13 kills.
Bates added 16 digs, while Katzy Randall had 11 and Amanda Rister finished with 10 and 28 assists in making her first career start as a Ladyjack. Sabrina Burns contributed four blocks and seven kills as well from her middle blocker spot.
The Ladyjacks managed to escape with narrow victories in each of the first two sets for a 2-0 lead at the break over the Mean Green. SFA held UNT to just .011 hitting in the first half of play, including .000 in the second set. That helped nullify .054 hitting by the Ladyjacks, despite seven kills from Ivy and six from Allen.
But it was SFA's play at the net that was the early difference as the Ladyjacks rejected seven Mean Green shot, four of which came from Allen, and three more from Sabrina Burns, who also delivered the set-clinching kill in the opening frame. Things were no easier in the third set as neither team holding better than a three-point lead at any point of the set. But it was SFA which looked like it was going to surge its way to a sweep late in the frame, falling behind 22-20 before running off four consecutive points behind Randall's serve. That gave the Ladyjacks a pair of match-point tries, which the Mean Green managed to fight off, eventually scoring a set-point try of their own at 26-25; however, Bates answered with a kill, followed by a score from Allen before a misfire from Dillard fell to floor to close it out.
SFA has now closed out its non-conference slate and will step back into Southland Conference play on Friday when it travels to Natchitcohes for a meeting with Northwestern State.
-SFA-
