Hilltoppers clinch at least a tie for conference crown, but fall to Incarnate Word
AUSTIN, Texas-The St. Edward's volleyball team clinched at least a tie for the Heartland Conference championship Thursday, but did so in a five-set heartbreaker loss to Incarnate Word, 25-22, 23-25, 22-25, 25-23 and 13-15.
Despite losing four straight matches, St. Edward's (20-10, 11-2 HC) will now host the Heartland Conference tournament Nov. 13 and 14.
In the first set against Incarnate Word (23-8, 10-3 HC), the Hilltoppers fell behind quickly, 7-4. But they climbed back, tying the Cardinals at 9-9. The Hilltoppers then took the lead and staved off a late Cardinal rally to win the set, 25-22.
It was the Cardinals that came back from the early deficit in the second set to take the lead, going up 13-10 after a 10-10 tie. The Hilltoppers tied the score up again at 15-15 and then at 17-17, but the Cardinals retook the lead and claimed a second-set victory by a nose, 25-23.
The Hilltoppers found themselves down 10-6 in the third set, but battled back to tie the score at 10-10. The tie was short-lived, however, as the Cardinals went on a 9-2 run to take a 19-12 lead. The Hilltoppers slowly inched back and were behind by just one point late, 23-22, thanks to two straight services aces by junior Chelsea Barsamian. But the Cardinals hung on to win the set, 25-22, due in part to nine Hilltopper attack errors.
In the fourth set, the Hilltoppers gained a 10-5 lead after a 5-0 run. The Cardinals then pulled ahead, 14-12. The Cardinals held a 22-20 lead late, but five straight Hilltopper points gave the Hilltoppers a fourth-set win, 25-22. With the fourth-set victory, the Hilltoppers claimed the Heartland Conference championship.
The Cardinals came out with a head of steam in the fifth set and took an 8-4 lead. Despite closing the gap and tying the score at 13-13, the Hilltoppers lost the fifth set, 15-13, on two straight errors.
The Hilltoppers had a .170 hitting percentage in the match, compared to .270 for the Cardinals. The Hilltoppers' attack was led by sophomores Ashley Vander Hey, who had 14 kills, and Lindy Luleff, who had 11 kills. Sophomore Courtney Trevino and junior Pam Osborn each added nine kills to the attack and freshman Meredith Bard had eight kills, with five crucial kills in the fourth set. Freshman Ale'tra Ware recorded six kills, all of which came in the third set. In addition, Barsamian dished out 45 assists in the match.
The Hilltoppers also recorded 11 service aces in the match. Barsamian and freshman Laura Colley had three service aces apiece.
Defensively, freshman Michelle Hundt came up with 24 digs on the night. Vander Hey contributed 16 digs to record a double-double, and Trevino added 12 digs to her line for the night.
For the Cardinals, Chelsea Grayson and Edie Weise each had 17 kills, while Emily Kopecki added a double-double with 13 kills to go along with her 17 digs. Sarah Nordman, who also had five kills in the match, led all competitors with 58 assists.
Defensively for the Cardinals, Spencer Ladd had a game-high 36 digs. Mary Beth Huber had 13 digs in the match and Nicole Morfin added 10 digs.
The Hilltoppers return to action at home Saturday to face St. Mary's. First serve is set for 2 p.m. in the RCC.