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TWU
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Life > Athletics > Volleyball > Archives > 2003
News > September 20
PIONEERS
END SOUTHWEST REGIONAL CHALLENGE
ON A GOOD NOTE
LAWTON,
OK—Texas Woman’s
University (2-11) ended an eight-match losing streak when
they handed
Drury (7-7) a 3-1 (26-30, 33-31, 30-25, 30-23)
loss in the final match of the Southwest Regional Challenge,
hosted by Cameron University. Junior transfer Courtney
Lewis (San Antonio, TX/Panola College) stepped
up big in the win with a season-high 10 kills and 26 digs.
Earlier in the day, the Pioneers lost to St. Mary’s
University (5-6) 0-3 (15-30, 22-30, 24-30).
TWU
struggled in their match with St. Mary’s as the Rattlers’ defense
allowed the Pioneers only 26 kills while they registered 48. Game one was tied
5-5 when St. Mary’s went on a 10-3 run to take a commanding lead. TWU
committed 12 hitting errors and the Rattlers took the first frame 15-30. It
was much of the same in game two as St. Mary’s went a 9-3 run with the
score tied a 4 apiece to take control. The Pioneers tried to close the gap
late in the game when they went on a 4-0 run, making the score 19-25, but it
was too little too late as the Rattlers won the game 22-30. TWU put on their
best offensive performance in game three, recording 11 kills on 47 swings for
a .085 attack percentage, but St. Mary’s controlled the set from the
start, taking the game, 24-30, and the match.
TWU
finished the match with a .008 attack percentage with 26
kills and 25 errors on 119 swings. Melanie Pabalate
(Fort Worth, TX/Navarro College) led
the Pioneers with six kills while Paz Diaz (Truth or Consequences,
NM/N.M. Military Institute) finished with a game-high 16 digs. Carley
Messmer (Garland, TX/UT-San Antonio) and Meredith Fry (Burnet, TX/Burnet
H.S.) shared the setting duties with Messmer turning in 10 assists
while Fry chipped in with nine.
"We
were down after game one, but the team played with a lot
of heart and came back and won the second game. After that,
our momentum was up and we just
road it to a win. It was nice to get a victory here because we ended this tournament
on a good note and we stopped an eight-match losing streak," head coach
Shelly Barberee said. "We went with a
different lineup against Drury and a lot of players stepped up. Courtney Lewis
made her
first start of the year
and played very well. Heather Smith and Melanie Pabalate also had a great match."
After
dropping game one 26-30, TWU played the closest game of the
tournament against Drury in the second frame. The lead changed
hands 12 times before
the Pioneers closed out the set on a hitting error by Drury and a kill
by Lewis. The momentum switched hands in game’s three and four, with
TWU taking control. The Pioneers surged out to an 8-3 lead in the game
three, thanks to a couple of service aces from Jenny Madrid (Panama
City, Panama/Hill College). TWU continued to hold onto their lead
with mini four and five point runs. The Pioneers won game three 30-25 by
hitting a match-high .269 with 18 kills on 52 swings. They kept the pressure
on Drury in game four, surging out to a 10-point lead, 15-5. Drury tried
to battle back late in the game, but two service aces by Pabalate pushed
the score to 26-17. The Pioneers committed three less hitting errors than
their opponents and finished off their first win since Aug. 30 with a 30-23
game four victory.
TWU
finished the match with a season-highs in kills (69), attempts
(222) and digs (109). They hit .180 as a team and the defense
caused 28 hitting errors
by Drury. Three other Pioneers besides Lewis recorded double-digits in
kills with Heather Smith (Chino Hills, CA/Ayala H.S.) leading
the team with 18 to go along with her 10 digs. Madrid connected on 17 kills
and Marci Brinkman (Carrollton, TX/Newman Smith HS) chipped
in with 11. Lewis and Diaz both finished with a team-high 26 digs. Pabalate
recorded eight kills, three service aces, 16 digs and three block assists.
Up
next, the Pioneers hit the road to face St. Edward’s
University in Austin, Tex. on Tuesday, Sept. 23 beginning
at 7 p.m. Then on Friday and
Saturday, Sept. 26-27, TWU will play in their final tournament of the 2003
season when they participate in the Lone Star Conference Crossover, hosted
by Midwestern State.
-- www.twuathletics.com --
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