HUNTSVILLE, Tex. – The Louisiana Tech volleyball team is off to its best start in ten years after taking all three matches to win the Sam Houston State Invitational.
The Lady Techsters finished an undefeated weekend on Saturday with wins over Sam Houston State and Prairie View A&M. Tech defeated Oral Roberts on Friday in five sets.
"It wasn't always pretty and we definitely felt we missed some opportunities to close out matches sooner, however, I am so proud of the grit this team showed in some highly stressful situations," said head coach
Amber McCray. "Each match had different players stepping up to make plays in crucial moments, and that was huge in building our team confidence moving forward."
"
Jordyn Carswell put together a stellar weekend to earn a well-deserved tournament MVP award, and seniors
Kaitlyn Adams and
Madeline Davis shouldered much of the offensive load for us against 3 scrappy teams who made us work for every single point," McCray continued. "Each team we played fought until the very end, and I'm just thrilled about the heart our team displayed to respond.
Match 1: LA Tech 3, Sam Houston State 2 (26-24, 21-25, 27-25, 24-26, 15-11)
Tech trailed in every set except the first, but still managed to pull out a five-set victory over Sam Houston State.
The Lady Techsters were on fire to open the day, jumping out to a 17-9 lead in the first set. Adams, Davis, and Carswell each picked up kills in the four-point run that gave Tech much of its early lead.
The Bearkats responded late in the set, scoring eight straight points to erase the Techster advantage and go up 23-22. Despite the change in momentum, Adams refused to let Tech lose, picking up three kills in the final four points to put the Techsters up 1-0.
Sam Houston State bounced back in the second set, taking a 14-6 lead and refusing to relinquish it. The Lady Techsters made a run at the end to pull within four, but couldn't close the gap enough to win the set.
The third set looked like it would be the same story as the second, but the Techsters managed to pull out a different ending. Down 18-11, Tech never quit. They pulled within five points at 23-18 before running off four straight, including two kills from Carswell. The junior wasn't done there either. She recorded a kill and a service ace in two of the final three points to give the Techsters a 27-25 victory.
The Bearkats bounced back once again in the fourth set, taking an 11-4 lead that turned out to be comeback-proof. Tech tied the match at 24 late in the set, but the Bearkats didn't let the frame get away and picked up a 26-24 win.
After the loss in the fourth set, Tech would need one more comeback to pull out the win. Sam Houston State jumped out to a 5-1 lead, forcing a Techster timeout. Tech made their run later in the frame. Trailing 8-7, Carswell contributed back-to-back-to-back kills to pull the Techsters in front. The Bearkats tried to get back into the match, but Maddy Davis finished it off with her 13
th kill of the afternoon.
Match 2: LA Tech 3, Prairie View A&M 1 (25-20, 25-20, 18-25, 27-25)
After playing a five set thriller in their first game of the day, Tech battled tired legs and the Panthers in game two, pulling out the win thanks to twenty kills from Adams.
The Lady Techsters started slow in the first set, staying in it due to errors from the Panthers, but Adams picked up the slack at the end. The senior picked up kills on three of the final five points to give Tech a 25-20 win.
The second set was more of the same, staying close until the Techsters pulled away at the end. Down 19-18, Tech scored five straight points to go up four. Adams drove home the set's final point for another 25-20 win.
Despite falling behind 2-0, the Panthers continued to battle. Prairie View A&M led for the entirety of the third set en route to a 25-18 win.
The Panthers continued their momentum into the final set of the day, at one point leading 22-17.
Natalie Honore's serving keyed the Tech comeback. The sophomore consistently had the Panthers out of system as the Techsters reeled off six straight points. They went on to win the final set of the day 27-25.
Looking Ahead: The Lady Techsters travel to Kansas City on September 6-7 for the KU Roos Klassic.
Keep up with the Lady Techsters by following them on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook at @LATechVB.
