SAN ANGELO, Texas – Playing their second road match in as many days, the Texas A&M-Kingsville women's volleyball team was unable to find an answer for the Angelo State Rambelles, dropping a decision in straight sets, 25-9, 25-19, 25-22, on Friday night at Stephens Arena at the Junell Center in San Angelo, Texas.
The Javelinas (9-6, 2-3) hit .017 as a team, tallying 23 kills on 117 attacks. Junior Melanie Casteel (Dallas, Texas) led the squad with nine finishers. Casteel added a season-high 15 digs. Among the bright spots on the scoresheet for TAMUK were freshman Emily North's (Red Oak, Texas) 20 assists and fellow rookie Nicole Murff (San Antonio, Texas), who posted 16 scoops.
The Rambelles (12-4, 5-1) used a 10-0 run to turn a 4-4 tie in the first game into an insurmountable 14-4 lead. They later took six out of seven and TAMUK couldn't regain a foothold as ASU took the opening set, hitting .500 on 26 attacks in doing so.
A 4-0 spurt that included two smashes by junior Sarah Miller (Long Beach, Calif.) allowed the visitors to take a 5-3 advantage, but ASU grabbed six of the next eight points to move up by two. TAMUK responded by collecting five of the next six rallies, with junior Talleyshia Morris (Tulsa, Okla.) assisting on a pair of blocks, only to see Angelo State fight back to move ahead by two again at 17-15. TAMUK twice bounced back to forge ties, but a 6-1 run, finished off by a kill courtesy of Sundara Chin, sealed a 2-0 Rambelle edge.
The third frame was again tightly contested, with neither team leading by more than three. TAMUK went up 7-4 thanks to a start that included an ace and a kill by Casteel. ASU answered with 5-1 spurt, making the score 10-9, but another smash by Casteel helped the Javs go up 12-10. TAMUK later led 16-14 before the Rambelles took four straight rallies to jump in front by a pair. The visitors again went ahead at 22-21, but the final four points of the night went to home side, with Chin finishing things off with her ninth kill.
The Rambelles were led by Anna Graham's .526 hitting percentage and game-high 11 kills. Meghan Parker led all participants with 36 assists, as did Chloe Robinson with 17 digs. ASU ended the night with a .246 kill rate as a team.
The Javelinas don't even have to wait 24 hours for a chance to bounce back, as their Saturday schedule includes a noon contest against Tarleton State followed by 2:30 p.m. tilt against St. Mary's, both in Stephenville, Texas. Be sure to follow @JavelinaVB on Twitter and @javelinasports and @JavelinaVB on Instagram, like Javelina Volleyball on Facebook and visit Javelinasports.com to keep up with Javelina volleyball all year long.
