KINGSVILLE, Texas — The Texas A&M-Kingsville volleyball won their 15th straight set and fifth consecutive match inside the Steinke Physical Education Center on Saturday, as they took down Eastern New Mexico 25-18, 25-21, 25-20.
"It was a good win said coach Tanya Allen-Gonzalez after the sweep. "We had really good offense tonight all around. We had a lot of production from a lot of different hitters. We hit for a high percentage, and we just got a ton of kills."
The Javelinas (13-8, 5-3 LSC) took down the Greyhounds (12-12, 3-9 LSC) in straight sets, with much of the credit due to sophomore Ayanna Jackson's stellar 11-kill performance. Jackson was efficient in attack, hitting .474 and leading the team in blocks with two. Behind Jackson on the matches kill leader board was junior Jackie Alanis and freshman Madelyn Wallace who each logged eight.
TAMUK hit .282 as a team, with setters Sydney Whitmire and Elisa Carli each recording over 20 assists for the second consecutive match, with Whitmire leading the contest at 21. Senior Nicole Murff was also impressive in the win, as she dug 16 of the opposition's attacks and recorded a pair of service aces.
The Javelinas stole the first three points of the contest as multiple blocks and a Jackson kill handed the Javs a 3-0 lead. ENMU fought back, knotting the frame at nine. TAMUK then rattled off four straight in a string that saw a Murff ace, along with kills by freshman Rylan Pollard and Stiefer. Leading 13-9, the Javelinas' dominance continued as another Pollard kill delivered a 25-18 opening set win.
It was a back-and-forth start to the second set, as the teams remained knotted at six before a Greyhound error and a Pollard kill put the Javelinas up two. ENMU used a four-point stretch later in the set to take an 11-9 lead. TAMUK tied the contest moments later with an Alanis kill, and the score remained knotted until back-to-back successful attacks by Pollard and Stiefer resulted in a 20-18 Blue and Gold edge. A Greyhound kill cut the deficit to one, but the Javelinas claimed four of the final five rallies with an emphatic Estrada kill, capturing a 25-21 victory.
Both teams traded blows to begin the third frame, as a Murff service ace delivered an 8-8 tie. The squads traded rallies until an ace courtesy of Carli, a kill by Estrada, and multiple Greyhound errors put the Javs up 19-15. Three Greyhound scores pulled them back to within two, resulting in a 22-20 score, but a Jackson kill, ENMU error, and Alanis kill secured the Javelina's 5th straight home victory.
The Javelinas look to maintain their home winning streak on Wednesday, Oct. 19, as they host St. Edwards for Pack the House night before hitting the road for a pair of matches against Angelo State and UT Permian Basin.
Fans can follow Javelina volleyball all season long via Javelinaathletics.com, where they'll find links to live video and stats and a recap at the end of each match. Stay up-to-date with everything related to Javelina volleyball all season long by following @Javelina_VB and @JavelinaSports on Twitter, @JavelinaVB and @JavelinaSports on Instagram, liking TAMUK Volleyball on Facebook, subscribing to the Javelina Athletics YouTube Channel and visiting Javelinaathletics.com.
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