Wildcats eliminate top-seed SFA in historic upset

Southland Conference Championship Central
 

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CORPUS CHRISTI – Any version of the word 'History' can easily become cliché when documenting the infinite number of athletic triumphs, but its usage in describing Abilene Christian's 3-2 win Friday over volleyball juggernaut and 26-match winner Stephen F. Austin is completely appropriate.
 
The Wildcats (12-17) came here to the Dugan Wellness Center and Southland Conference Championship intending to make history, and so they did by becoming the league's first No. 8 seed to oust the regular-season champions since 2005 when the conference adopted its current postseason model.
 
ACU won by scores of 16-25, 25-21, 25-22, 22-25 and 15-12 for its second victory in three matches against the gold standard of Southland Conference volleyball – a program led by 30-year veteran head coach Debbie Humphreys, who counts nine regular-season and four tournament championships among her 662 career victories.
 
So, when one puts up this tradition of excellence against a fifth-year D1 program making its postseason debut with a first-year head coach at the helm then it's believable to suggest the triumph served as the Southland equivalent to 'David v. Goliath,' 'Jets v. Colts' and 'Hogan v. Andre.'
 
"This win is so meaningful, and we feel so blessed and excited for this opportunity," ACU head coach Angela Mooney said in her postmatch comments to Greg Miller of SFAVolleyblog.net. "We made history by getting into the tournament and knocking off the No. 1 seed … and that's what it's about, creating our own history in our own way."
 
History also was on the mind of freshman middle blocker Lorin McNeil, who led the Wildcats with 16.0 points on 14 kills (.462) and four block assists.
 
"We did it," McNeil exclaimed to the Southland Conference's Chris MyCoskie. "We knew we had a chance from the very beginning – and even from the last time we played them (to beat SFA) – so we just kept pushing until we did it."
 
McNeil was one of five Wildcats to accumulate 10 or more points, and her second kill of the fifth set gave the Wildcats a 10-7 lead. A block from senior Corinne Grandcolas (3 block assists) and junior Lauren Walker (10.5 points, 8K) followed McNeil's point, and the Ladyjacks responded with a timeout.
 
ACU reached match point six plays later at 14-10, but were seemingly stuck there for an eternity as SFA scored the next two points off kills from Corin Evans (13K, two aces, .152) and Makenzee Hannah (14K, 6 block assists, .367). However, Morgan Hinds' second service sailed long to send ACU into Saturday's semifinal vs. Houston Baptist, which today swept Northwestern State in the 4 v. 5 match.
 
SFA is one of the best serving teams in the nation, averaging 1.58 aces per set to rank 26th among all D1 schools, but its eight errors today canceled out five aces. The Ladyjacks additionally made 28 errors on the attack (.188) and were called for four ball-handling and one blocking error.
 
ACU's serve, by comparison, appeared subpar (3 aces, 10 errors) on the box score, but Mooney on the contrary felt the Wildcats' serve and pass were keys to victory.
 
"We passed consistently well at a high number and served tough," she said. "Our serve kept SFA out of system and it was tough for them to get their best hitters going at that faster tempo."
 
Junior setter Kendall Bosse was credited with two of the Wildcats' three aces, both of which came midway through the third set to give ACU a 13-9 lead. She also tossed up 42 assists, dug out 12 attacks, rejected five others, and hammered in six kills on 15 attempts (.333).
 
Bosse's complete game, especially as an attacker, left Mooney impressed.
 
"Kendall was offensive at the right times," she said. "She did a good job distributing, but also attacking and picked some good spots. She's still learning about herself and what she can be as an attacker, and when she dumps in the ball it has to be aggressive – she can't try and drop it in behind the front line. And as a result, I think SFA only stopped her once. It was a good offensive match for her."
 
Double-doubles also were registered by outside hitters Jacey Smith and Katelyn Mueller. Smith, a junior, dug out 14 attacks to go along with a dozen kills, while Mueller, a freshman, chipped in 16 digs with 11 kills.
 
Sophomore libero Amanda Chapa led all players with 28 digs and junior defensive specialist Mikai Brown came off the bench to dig out 10 of the Ladyjacks' 186 attacks.
 
A 10-3 run near the end of the first set provided SFA with an early 1-0 lead, but the Ladyjacks weren't nearly as elusive in sets two and three, which featured a combined 18 ties and five lead changes.
 
Two SFA errors late in the second set broke a 20-20 tie, and a bad set by Ann Hollas (55 assists) pushed the Wildcats to set point. Walker went on to deliver the set-winning kill on the following play, and at the start of set three, she contributed two points as part of a 6-1 start.
 
SFA came all the way back to tie the set three score at 21-21, but the Wildcats would score four of the last five points. McNeil broke the deadlock with her fifth kill of the set, and after the Ladyjacks tied the score once more at 22-22 on a kill from Hannah, they immediately crushed their own momentum with service (Hinds) and attack errors (Evans).
 
Smith gave ACU a 2-1 lead with her ninth kill of the match – and fifth of the set – but with she and four of her teammates each held to one kill apiece in set four, the Ladyjacks evened the match score once more at 2-2 following their 25-22 win.
 
There were two lead changes in the final set with ACU moving ahead for good on consecutive kills from Walker and Mueller that made it a 5-3 score. The Wildcats soon pushed their lead out to five points at 13-8, which ultimately provided enough cushion en route to their historic victory.
 
ACU's next match is slated for Saturday at noon vs. the Huskies, which defeated the Wildcats, 3-1, earlier this season at Sharp Gym. HBU leads its all-time series over ACU, 5-1.
 
"Being the underdog is awesome," said Mooney. "There's nothing for us to lose and everything to gain."