ABILENE - Abilene Christian volleyball gutted out a 3-2 win over UT Arlington in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament quarterfinals at Moody Coliseum on Thursday night. The Wildcats earned their first-ever WAC Tournament victory and first win in a conference tournament since 2017.
ACU is set for a semifinals matchup with top-seeded Utah Valley at Moody Coliseum at 7 p.m. Friday. The Wildcats are aiming for their 14th win of the season, which would be the most in the program's Division I era. With its 13th victory on Thursday, ACU marked its most in a season since 2018.
The Wildcats bested the Mavericks in front of 1,287 fans, the team's highest home attendance since 2022.
ACU tallied 61 kills and six service aces while delivering 12 blocks. Four Wildcats recorded double-digit kills, headed by
Ashli Edmiston and
Hannah Gonzalez with 12 apiece. The All-WAC First Team honoree Gonzalez swung at a .474 clip to go with seven blocks, including three of the solo variety, and an ace.
Aubrey Beaver and
Annaleise Sevier registered 10 kills each, with Sevier building a .300 hitting percentage. She blocked three attacks, while
Avery Thaler and
Hadlee Welch had five and four blocks, respectively. Welch, a WAC All-Freshman Team selection, added seven kills.
Fellow WAC All-Freshman Team member
Brennan Ramirez collected 23 digs, and All-WAC Second Team honoree
Rachel Koss dished out 32 assists. Koss was baptized by Gonzalez on the ACU campus earlier in the afternoon.
The Wildcats came out of the gates with a hot start, scoring six points in a row to take a 7-1 lead in the opening set. ACU used a 4-0 rally to build a 16-7 edge after the midway point, while a 6-1 UT Arlington run brought it within four points at 18-14. The Wildcats built a 5-1 streak on their way to capturing a 25-19 victory.
Gonzalez, Edmiston and Sevier notched three kills apiece, while Gonzalez recorded a pair of solo blocks and a block assist.
The Mavericks took an early lead in the second set at 6-3 before the Wildcats fought back. They mounted a 9-1 rally to move ahead, 12-7, before a 5-1 streak armed the home team with a 17-11 advantage. UT Arlington got within a couple points following four consecutive points, but ACU answered to reach set point at 24-20.
The Mavericks responded, though, with four points in a row to even the score at 24. The Wildcats reached set point again following a service error, but UT Arlington rattled off three straight points to clinch a come-from-behind 27-25 victory. Beaver had three kills, and Thaler blocked a pair of attacks in the period.
UT Arlington got off to an 8-5 lead in the third set before ACU engineered a 10-1 rally to move in front, 15-9. The Wildcats led by as much as seven and fended off a 5-1 run by the Mavericks. ACU sandwiched a pair of 3-0 runs around three straight UT Arlington points to seal a 25-19 win.
Both squads stayed neck and neck in the early goings of the fourth set before the Mavericks scored seven points in a row to move into the driver's seat, 19-13. The Wildcats attempted a comeback with a 3-0 run to get within 23-20, but UT Arlington scored the final two points to force a fifth set with a 25-20 victory.
ACU set the tone to begin the fifth set, earning six of the period's first seven points. It reached match point at 14-8 before the Mavericks recorded three consecutive points. Gonzalez finished off a 15-11 win with her fourth kill of the set, delivered by Koss.
