JMU and Texas State best Wildcat Volleyball

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Abilene Christian volleyball dropped both ends of its Saturday doubleheader in concluding its stay at the Creeds and Crests Classic, falling 3-1 to 2017 postseason qualifiers James Madison and Texas State.

The Dukes and Bobcats were among the best mid-major conference teams last season, combining for 48 victories and 16 losses. JMU won the CAA and lost to Colorado in the first round of the NCAA Championship, while the Bobcats settled for a spot in the NIVC after falling to Coastal Carolina in the Sun Belt Championship.

The Wildcats (2-6) nearly pushed the Dukes (5-2) to a fifth set after coming all the way back from an 8-1 deficit in set four. ACU would tie the score at 8-8 thanks to three service aces from sophomore outside hitter Katelyn Mueller and kills from veteran attackers Jacey Smith and Marybeth Sandercox.

From there, JMU went ahead by as many as five points; however, the Wildcats strung together four consecutive points to narrow their deficit to 23-22 with seniors Lauren Walker and Kendall Bosse teaming up for two kills and a block.

Then after the Dukes were the first to reach match point, Bosse and Walker again provided kills as part of a 3-0 run that put the Wildcats ahead 25-24.

JMU scored the next point, and after sophomore Lorin McNeil tied the score a final time at 26-26, the Dukes finished the set and match with three consecutive kills. M'Kaela White supplied the match-winning point and was one of five JMU players to register 10 or more kills as the Dukes prevailed by scores of 24-26, 25-11, 25-14 and 28-26.

ACU led most of the first set until the Dukes caught the Wildcats on a 14-9 run. White then brought JMU to match point at 24-23, forcing ACU into a timeout. But after the stoppage Mueller tied the score with one of her nine kills and junior libero Amanda Chapa followed with back-to-back service aces.

Mueller and Chapa were responsible for six of the Wildcats' aces. Wildcat middle blockers McNeil and Walker also fared well on the attack, going 19-for-44 with only one error between the pair. Walker also led her team with six block assists.

McNeil's .500 hitting percentage vs. JMU (10-for-20, 0 errors) tied her for seventh place in the Wildcats' single-match D1 era record book. She hit .353 overall this weekend while averaging 1.75 kills per set, and finished third on the team with 27.0 points.

Sandercox also was solid on the attack and on the block for all three matches, hitting .309 with 29 kills (2.42 k/s) 11 block assists (0.92 blk/s) and 34.5 points. Her .391 hitting percentage from yesterday's match vs. UTSA was a personal best.

Texas State won its own tournament with a flawless 4-0 record followed by UTSA (2-1), JMU (2-1), ACU (0-3) and Incarnate Word (0-3). Bobcat Emily DeWalt was voted tournament MVP and was joined on the all-tournament team by teammates Madison Daigle and Janell Fitzgerald. The rest of the team was composed of UTSA and James Madison student-athletes.

In tonight's tournament finale, the Bobcats stopped the Wildcats in four sets by scores of 25-20, 22-25, 25-18 and 25-16.

Texas State scored the first eight points of the match but held on until the very end as the Wildcats got to within a point at 21-20 following a block from Walker and Bosse. Then the Bobcats responded with a set-ending 4-0 run that was capped by three consecutive kills from Daigle.

ACU tied the match at 1-1 thanks to an improved offensive showing in the second half, hitting .224 with 17 kills. The Wildcats again trailed early, but in the latter stages they would complete their comeback attempt and grab a late 23-20 lead on a 4-0 run that featured two kills from McNeil.

After the Bobcats once more narrowed the margin to 23-22, the Wildcats scored back-to-back kills from Sandercox and Walker.

Sets three and four were quite unfortunate as the Wildcats let early leads slip away in each. Texas State quickly dug its way out of a 4-0 hole to begin set three with a 10-2 run, and in set four, a 7-1 run for the home team at the midway point provided enough cushion for what eventually would be a nine-point victory.

The Wildcats return to action Sept. 7 for two matches in Tulsa vs. the Golden Hurricanes and Oral Roberts Golden Eagles.