CHADRON, Neb. — On Thursday, the Texas A&M-Kingsville volleyball team defeated Chadron State 25-23, 25-15, 25-18 at the Chicoine Center for an in-region sweep over a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opponent.
The Javelinas (8-6, 1-1 LSC) knocked off the Eagles (5-8, 3-1 RMAC) in three sets, recording a season-high .273 hitting percentage, thanks in large part to freshman Madelyn Wallace who led the contest with 12 kills at a .444 clip. TAMUK also out-blocked their opponents 6-4 and logged 18 more successful attacks than the opposition.
Junior Jackie Alanis posted nine kills and led the Javelinas in digs with 15, while sophomore Ayanna Jackson recorded eight kills and four blocks. Joining Alanis with double-digit digs, senior Nicole Murff logged 12, while Meghan Stiefer managed 10. Additionally, sophomore Sydney Whitmire was impressive, setting the ball with 26 assists to her credit.
The Javelinas took an early 7-5 lead in the first set before a four-point spurt allowed the Eagles to take a two-score lead. Down 9-7, the Javs stole five of the subsequent six rallies using kills by senior Kailey Estrada, Stiefer, and Whitmire to go up 12-10. CSC retied the game at 15 before a back-and-forth battle resulted in a 23-22 Eagle lead. From there, a kill by Wallace and an Eagle error put the Javelinas one score away from a set win. Wallace and Jackson then stood tall, blocking a CSC attack for a 25-23 victory.
CSC found themselves ahead 11-9 in the second set before a five-point surge featuring multiple kills by Stiefer allowed the Javelinas to take a 14-11 lead. The Eagles stole the next two rallies prior to an eight-point Blue and Gold swing that saw a Jackson ace and kills courtesy of Alanis and Wallace, putting the Javs up 22-13. From there, successful attacks by Alanis and freshman Rylan Pollard handed the squad a 25-15 set win.
Each team traded points in the third set until a three-point Eagle run resulted in a 12-10 score line. The Javelinas regrouped following a timeout and used a Whitmire ace to help take the following four points and a 14-12 lead. The set continued as the Eagles trimmed the deficit to one before a Wallace kill and a pair of errors afforded TAMUK a 20-16 edge. The Javs then closed things out with consecutive kills by sophomore Allison Stachowiak and a successful Jackson attack that delivered a 25-18 victory and a sweep over the Eagles.
The Javelinas will now welcome Texas A&M International inside the Steinke Physical Education Center on Thursday, with the home opener slated to begin at 6 p.m. in Kingsville, Texas.
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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