Box Score CONWAY, ARKANSAS – The University of the Incarnate Word volleyball team opened up the Crain Automotive Invitational on Thursday afternoon with a 3-1 victory: 25-20, 25-16, 25-14, 25-21 for their first win of the season against Southland Conference opponent Central Arkansas.
The Cardinals (1-3) opened up the match with a 25-20 set victory and
Bryaunea Hall (Copperas Cove, TX/ Copperas Cove) came out on fire. Hall led the team with six kills in the opening set and set the tone early for the UIW attack. The Cardinals never trailed during the opening set although they were unable to pull away from the Sugar Bears (2-2). The turning point in the set occurred after a kill from Hall stopped a two point Central Arkansas run giving the Cardinals a 22-18 point advantage.
Madison Williams (New Braunfels, TX/ Canyon) notched the final kill of the set giving UIW the one set lead. For the set, the Cardinals had 17 kills as a team and a .350 attacking percentage.
The second set started slowly for the Cardinals as they started out with a 3-0 deficit early. However, the team would battle back to tie the set at 8-8 and UIW would go on to dominate the Sugar Bears through the mid-portion on the set cruising to a 25-16 set win.
Autumn Lockley (Leander, TX/ Leander) rebounded from a slow start in the first set and led the Cardinals with six kills in the second set.
Emily Waller (Houston, TX/ Cypress Falls) also played well with four kills of her own. The team continued its strong attack in the second set with 14 kills and a .276 attacking percentage.
After taking the first two sets of the match, the Cardinals would struggle with their attack in the third set. The team only registered seven kills and also had seven errors in the set. The Sugar Bears jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but unlike the second set, the Cardinals could not battle back and would go on to lose the set 25-14 to force a fourth set.
The fourth set was the most competitive during the match. Neither team could get a significant advantage early. The set was tied at 20-20 when the Sugar Bears had a service error to give the Cardinals a one-point lead. The next play, Lockley notched her 19
th kill of the match to give UIW a 22-20 advantage and Central Arkansas would respond with a kill by Haley Tippett to cut the Cardinals lead to just one. However, the Sugar Bears had three straight attacking errors to give UIW the 25-21 set victory and the 3-1-match win. Lockley once again led the Cardinals attack with six kills and team had nine kills with a .091 attacking percentage.
For the match, Lockley completed the double-double with 19 kills and 11 digs and she also had a .260 attacking percentage. Hall finished play with nine kills and a team high four blocks. Waller added seven kills and two blocks while
Cameron Edwards (League City, TX/ Clear Springs) finished the match with five kills and two digs. Williams had a spectacular performance with a season high 37 assist while also contributing with nine digs and three kills.
Shaina Garza (San Antonio, TX/ Warren) had a team high 16 digs from her libero position. For the Sugar Bears, Rachel Sharp led the team with a double-double accumulating 14 kills and 11 digs. Tippett also had double-digit kills with 10.
The Cardinals continue play in the Crain Automotive Invitational tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. against Louisiana-Monroe.
