Hilltoppers claim sole possession of conference title in win
AUSTIN, Texas-The St. Edward's volleyball team claimed sole possession of the Heartland Conference title Saturday by beating St. Mary's in four sets, 25-19, 23-25, 25-20 and 25-21.
With the win, St. Edward's (21-10, 12-2 HC) halted their four game losing skid. But the Hilltoppers have still won just two of their last seven matches.
In the first set, the Hilltoppers went on a 6-0 run to leap to a 14-7 lead. St. Mary's (7-22, 6-8 HC) battled back twice to come to within four points at both 17-13 and at 22-18. However, the Hilltoppers held on to win the set, 25-19.
The Hilltoppers took a 5-3 lead early in the second set, but soon found themselves down 11-7. But the Hilltoppers rallied back, tying the Rattlers at 11-11. The set became a stalemate after that, with a back-and-forth battle that continued until the Rattlers broke a 23-23 tie to win the set, 25-23.
In the third set, the Hilltoppers again were at a virtual stalemate with the Rattlers throughout. There were 14 tied scores and five lead changes in the set. The Hilltoppers finally fought back the Rattlers late to win the set, 25-20.
The Rattlers took a 14-11 lead in the fourth set, but the Hilltoppers battled back to take a 16-14 lead. The Rattlers retook the lead at 18-17, but could not hold back the Hilltoppers. The Hilltoppers took the fourth set, 25-20.
In the match, the Hilltoppers had three fewer kills than the Rattlers, but still came out victorious. Freshman Meredith Bard and sophomore Courtney Trevino led the attack with 11 kills apiece. Freshman Ale'tra Ware also had nine kills and sophomore Lindy Luleff contributed eight. At setter, sophomore Chelsea Barsamian had a game-high 24 assists and senior Allison Ralston recorded 22.
Defensively, freshman Michelle Hundt led all competitors with 20 digs on the afternoon. Vander Hey and Trevino each added nine more digs to the back-row defense.
For the Rattlers, the attack was led by Katelyn Kershner, who had 13 kills. Kori McCarver, Kristen Chapman and Luisa Rodriguez each added 11 kills in the match. At setter, Sondra Cui dished out 23 assists and Allie Murray added 22 more assists.
Defensively for the Rattlers, Stephanie Flores led the way with 19 digs. In addition, Kershner had 17 digs and Rodriguez added 15 digs to give both women double-doubles for the match.
The Hilltoppers will play their final match Tuesday before the Heartland Conference tournament next weekend. They will battle Huston-Tillotson at home. The Hilltoppers will be honoring their seniors, Ralston and Lizzy Lepore at the match. First serve is set for 7 p.m. in the RCC.