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Life > Athletics > Volleyball > 11/2/06
TWU SWEEPS ACU TO ADVANCE IN LSC TOURNAMENT
LAWTON, Oklahoma (Nov. 2) – The Texas Woman's University Pioneers needed only three games on  Thursday night to earn a Lone Star Conference Tournament victory over the two-time defending tournament champion Abilene Christian University Wildcats at Aggie Gym on the campus of Cameron University.
Playing what head coach Shelly Barberee termed "one of our best matches of the season", TWU defeated ACU by the scores of 33-31, 30-24, and 30-22.
The three-game sweep by the Pioneers gives TWU a significant measure of revenge on the Wildcats. ACU defeated TWU in four games in the semifinals of the 2005 LSC Conference Tournament. And, last month, the Wildcats topped TWU in five games in a LSC Crossover Tournament contest.
Senior middle blocker Nicole Everett (pictured) was the catalyst in the win for the Pioneers. The Crandall, Texas product recorded a .435 hitting percentage in the match and led TWU with 15 kills. Everett also added 8 block assists and 9 total blocks to the TWU cause. Sophomore middle blocker Kandis Schroeder matched Everett's .435 hitting percentage en route to pounding down 10 kills of her own. Schroeder also contributed seven block assists and two service aces for the Pioneers.
Setter Jill Arnold, a senior from Alvin, Texas, set the table for the TWU offensive attack with 35 assists. Arnold also finished off 5 kills of her own and blocked 9 ACU attack efforts.
Barberee said that TWU's success in blocking the ACU attack helped turn the match in the Pioneers favor.
"We shut them down, plain and simple. The first five times that Abbie Lowery (ACU's top outside hitter) attacked, we were there to block her. And we just got better from there. When our block is working that effectively, we're a very tough team to beat," she explained.
With the win, TWU advances to play a 7:30 p.m. game on Friday, November 3 against the host team in the tournament, the Cameron Aggies. Cameron was the top team in the North Division of the LSC during regular season play. The Aggies defeated TWU in two matches this season, recording a three-game win over the Pioneers on September 14 and prevailing in five games against the Pioneers on October 14. Barberee, however, believes those losses are long forgotten by the Pioneers.
"We're not worried about those two matches. This team has matured and improved over the course of the season, and we're playing our best volleyball of the year right now. The key for us is going to be whether or not we can play relaxed and composed like we did tonight. I'm excited to see how it turns out," she said.
NOTES: Senior outside hitter Robin Hawkins did not play for TWU in the match against ACU. Hawkins, who had 274 kills for the Pioneers during the regular season, was taken to a Lawton hospital on Thursday afternoon after falling ill. Barberee said late Thursday night that Hawkins is not expected to return to the court this weekend for the Pioneers.
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