Game 4 | EIU

Game 5 | Jackson State

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - On day one of the Tiger Invitational, Louisiana Tech swept through the competition, defeating Eastern Illinois 3-1 and Jackson State 3-0.

"I am very proud of the team for their effort today," head coach Adriano de Souza said. "They stayed focused during the toughest part of each match."

Angie Papach led the team in kills in both matches recording a team-high 26 kills in the two matches combined. On top of that, Papach also recorded eight service aces on the day.

Louisiana Tech opened the invitational at 10 a.m. against Eastern Illinois and came out firing on all cylinders. The Lady Techsters jumped out to a 6-0 lead forcing an EIU timeout. Louisiana Tech never took their foot off the gas in the set, leading by as much as 13 and taking the first set 25-12.

In the second set, EIU held a 19-15 lead, but the Lady Techster attack took over at that point. LA Tech would win 10 of the next 12 points to take the second set 25-21. Over that stretch the Lady Techsters recorded three service aces, one coming from Brooke Short and the other two coming from Nia Myah Johnson.

EIU rallied in the third set, but after Louisiana Tech took a 19-18 lead on a kill from Hannah Wright, the Panthers went on a 7-2 run to take the set 25-21.

In the final set, Louisiana Tech opened up an 8-3 lead in the early stages. EIU cut their deficit to one at 16-15, the Techsters went on to win the next four points to pull away for good, taking the set and match 25-19.

Louisiana Tech had three players record double-digit kills as Papach registered a team-high 14 and was joined by Alexa Lister who recorded 13 kills and Marta Monne who had 11. Alejandra Aviles registered a team-high 21 digs in the game.

Short recorded a double-double in consecutive games and also had 50 or more assists for the second time this season. Short coupled 50 assists with 10 digs to help lead the Techster attack. Short also had a team-high four service aces.

"Brooke is connecting very well with her hitters, which is creating great opportunities for our offense to score," de Souza said.

In their second game of the day, Louisiana Tech cruised past an overmatched Jackson State team. The two teams went back and forth early, but with the score knotted at 17, LA Tech would score eight straight points to close out the first set 25-17. During that run, Papach recorded three consecutive service aces.

The first half of the second set resembled the first set as the two teams traded blows. With the game tied at 10-10, LA Tech won three consecutive points but that would be all the separation needed as the Lady Techsters continued to stretch their lead over the remainder of the period and ultimately win the set 25-18.

Louisiana Tech was in complete control in the final set, as the Techsters posted a .364 attacking percentage during that third set. LA Tech won the final set 25-14.

Papach recorded a team-high 12 kills in the match, while no other Lady Techster was in double digits. The Louisiana Tech defensive effort was led by Aviles who registered 17 digs in the match.

"Our players are really working hard to make sure that they play with high energy and support each other at all time," de Souza said.

Louisiana Tech is back in action tomorrow at 2 p.m. taking on host Memphis in the Tiger Invitational finale.