After two wins against the South Alabama Jaguars (14-10,10-4 SBC) this past weekend, the Arkansas State (22-4,12-2 SBC) volleyball team took first place in the Sun Belt West division. 

The first set of Friday’s match saw the Jaguars win 28-26. The entire set was a back and forth fight, with the Red Wolves being the first to make it to 25 points and the Jaguars only a point behind. However, the game continued until the Jaguars pulled ahead by two, South Alabama winning the first set 28-26.

The Red Wolves ended the set with 20 kills, 11 errors, 46 total attempts and a hitting percentage of 1.96.

A-State started off hot in the second set, scoring three in a row and then held their lead until the very end of the set. At 20-16 Red Wolves, the Jaguars went on a four score run which made the score 20-19, but A-State turned around and won the set with seven unanswered points, going from 20-19 Jaguars to 25-20 Red Wolves.

The Red Wolves started the set off with a service ace from libero Mia Maloney and finished the second set with 13 kills, 6 errors, 31 total attempts and a .226 hitting percentage. 

The third set was much like the second, yet neither team went on a long scoring spree. The score ended up tied multiple times but the Red Wolves never let the Jaguars get ahead in the set. The Red Wolves won the third set 25-22, taking the lead in the match 2-1.

After the third set, Arkansas State had 14 kills, 8 errors, 40 total attempts and a hitting percentage of .15. Libero Sarah Martinez scored two of the three first points of the set with two service aces.

South Alabama led for a majority of the fourth and final set. The Jaguars were two points away from winning their second set at 23-21 Jaguars when the Red Wolves went on a scoring spree, winning the set and the game at 23-25.

The Red Wolves finished set four with 21 kills, 9 errors, 52 total attempts and a .231 hitting percentage. Throughout the match, Arkansas State had 68 kills, 34 errors, 169 total attempts and a hitting percentage of .201.

Outside hitter Kaitlin Whitlock had the most kills in the game with 20. Outside hitter Grace Wiley and middle blocker Daedrianna Cail recorded the most blocks with 5 each. Setter Erin Madigan put up 33 assists and outside hitter Kaitlin Whitlock had 21 digs during the night.

Saturday’s game was senior day. Grace Wiley, Sarah Martinez, right side hitter Maddie Wiersema and middle blocker Kyla Wiersema were the four players honored before the game. 

Just like the match the previous day, the final score of the first set was 28-26, yet it was the Red Wolves who came out with the win. It was a back-and-forth set with a few scoring sprees including five unanswered points from Arkansas State which helped them retake the lead in the middle of the set. 

The first set ended with 17 kills, 9 errors, 44 total attempts and .182 hitting percentage by the home team. Middle blocker Haley Glunz served an ace early on in the set. 

The second set started with the Jaguars getting an early lead and it stayed that way throughout the set. The second set ended with South Alabama beating Arkansas State 25-17, tying the match at 1-1.

Even with the loss, the Red Wolves still had good second set stats as they recorded 10 kills, 5 errors, 36 total attempts and had a hitting percentage of .139.

In the third set, the Red Wolves managed to flip the score, winning the set 25-17 and even put up six unanswered points during it, extending their lead from 12-7 to 17-7. The Jaguars did the same thing back to the Red Wolves and also put up six unanswered points later in the set, closing the gap from the previous 21-11 Red Wolves to 21-16 Red Wolves. 

During the third set, the Red Wolves recorded 16 kills, 6 errors, 28 total attempts and a hitting percentage of .263. Grace Wiley also served an ace during the set. 

The fourth and final set was close until the Red Wolves continued to score on long rallies and multiple points in a row. The Red Wolves finished the set and the game 25-18, clinching their place as the Sunbelt west conference champions.

In the final set, Arkansas State had 14 kills, 9 errors, 53 total attempts and .094 as their hitting percentage. They finished the match with a total of 57 kills, 29 errors, 171 total attempts and a hitting percentage of .164.

Kaitlin Whitlock had the most kills of the match again with 16. Erin Madigan had both the most blocks and the most assists with five and 41 respectively. Sarah Martinez ended the match with the most digs at 27.

The Red Wolves head to Virginia to face off against the Old Dominion Monarchs (16-9, 5-7 SBC) on Nov. 14 and 15 at 5 p.m.

Categories: Sports