PIONEERS DROP EASTERN NEW MEXICO, MOVE ON IN LSC TOURNAMENT

CANYON, TX—Texas Woman’s University (16-18) actually recorded less kills than Eastern New Mexico (16-15), but the Pioneers used 10 less serving errors and 10 more digs to edge past the Zias 3-1 (30-25, 30-26, 25-30, 30-26) and move on to the second round of the Lone Star Conference Tournament. This was TWU’s first post-season victory since Nov. 13, 1997 when they beat Texas A&M-Kingsville 3-0 in the first round of the LSC Tournament. The Pioneers will face tournament host West Texas A&M tomorrow night, starting at 7:30 p.m. at The Box.

"We didn’t play our best tonight, but the team played good enough to win. Eastern New Mexico concentrated their efforts in stopping Jenny Madrid, which left our other players open and we used that to our advantage," head coach Shelly Barberee said. "Our passing was not very good and our serve receiving was terrible. I think a lot of our poor performance had to do with our nerves because this team has not played in a tournament with this kind of magnitude. There are some things in our play that we will have to clean up before tomorrow or we are not going to have the same outcome. We are going to have our hands full with West Texas A&M."

TWU took control of game one early when they went on a 11-0 run, thanks in part to three straight errors by the Zias, with the scored tied at 3-3. Anna Bellum brought ENMU back into the match when she recorded three straight kills to knot the game up at 15 apiece. Both teams exchanged the lead two more times before a kill by Carley Messmer (Garland, TX/UT-San Antonio) and a service ace by Jenny Madrid (Panama City, Panama/Hill College) gave the Pioneers a 27-23 advantage. Messmer gave TWU a 1-0 lead in the match when she ended game one, 30-25, with her fifth kill of the frame. Game two was close as both teams exchanged the lead four times off of 12 ties. With the score knotted at 18, Madrid delivered two kills and the Zias committed three attack errors, pushing TWU out in front 23-18. Another kill by Messmer and a service ace by Courtney Lewis (San Antonio, TX/Panola College) gave the Pioneers a 30-26 win and a 2-0 lead in the match. TWU recorded a match-high .270 attack percentage in the second frame with 16 kills and six errors on 37 swings.

In game three, ENMU took an early 2-3 lead after one of Bellum’s six kills in the frame and never looked back. The Zias stretched their lead to 8-13 when TWU recorded three straight hitting errors. Both teams struggled to find an offense in the third frame as ENMU recorded a .167 attack percentage while the Pioneers hit a match-low .096. The Zias were on the verge of taking game three when Madrid recorded an attack error to make the score 21-29, but four straight errors closed the gap to four. Bellum ended the game at 25-30 with a kill and moved the match into an extra period. TWU was down 1-6 in game four when Marci Brinkman (Carrollton, TX/Newman Smith HS) turned in three kills, coupled with five hitting errors by the Zias, to give the Pioneers a 9-6 lead. After a kill by Heather Smith (Chino Hills, CA/Ayala HS) and two more hitting errors by ENMU, TWU stretched its lead to eight, 20-12. The Zias put together an 11-3 run to knot the game at 23, but Smith, Madrid, Brinkman and Melanie Pabalate (Fort Worth, TX/Navarro College) all chipped in with one kill apiece to give TWU some breathing room, 27-24. The Zias’ serving problems proved to be their undoing as Jennifer Bullock knocked her final serve into the net to give the Pioneers a 30-26 victory, and a ticket into the second round.

TWU finished the match with 58 kills and 29 errors on 192 swings for an attack percentage of .151. Madrid led the team with 19 kills and four block assists while Smith chipped in with 10 kills and three assists. Messmer was the only Pioneer to record a double-double as she finished the match with 40 assists and a season-high 19 digs to go along with her seven kills. ENMU was led by Bellum who recorded a match-high 24 kills while her teammate Emilie Rodman turned in 18.

Up next, the Pioneers will face West Texas A&M at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 14 in the second round of the Lone Star Conference Tournament. The Lady Buffs were the LSC South Division Champions and are looking for their fifth-straight conference title.