In their final road match of the season, the Henderson State volleyball team visited the University of Arkansas-Monticello and were swept by the Lady Cotton Blossoms 3-0 (26-24, 25-19, 25-17) on Tuesday evening.
The opening set was handled by the Lady Cotton Blossoms early as they jumped out to a 10-4 lead. A 5-0 run pulled the Lady Reddies within a point, 10-9. After a couple of quick points extended the Lady Cotton Blossoms' lead to 12-9, the Lady Reddies would go on an 8-1 run and held a four-point lead, 17-13. From there, the Lady Cotton Blossoms battled back with a run of their own and eventually reached set point 24-21. The Lady Cotton Blossoms were unable to close out the set in regulation however as they committed three consecutive errors which tied the set at 24-all. Back-to-back kills from Amanda Dills sealed the first set victory, 26-24, for the Lady Cotton Blossoms.
The Lady Reddies looked to bounce back in the second set, and did so early holding a lead throughout most of the first part of the set. The lead was not ever more than four points and the Lady Cotton Blossoms forced several ties, including the final tie score of the set, 19-all. For the Lady Cotton Blossoms, their 19th point of the set sparked a 7-0 run that closed out the set and gave the win to UAM, 25-19. Similar to the first set, Dills was responsible for the final two kills of the set.
Ahead two sets to none in the match, the Lady Cotton Blossoms saved their best hitting performance for the third and final set. 13 kills on 25 total attacks and only three errors powered the Lady Cotton Blossoms to a .400 hitting percentage and a 25-17 third set victory to give them the three-set sweep over the Lady Reddies.
The third set was the only set that the Lady Reddies recorded double-figure kills in a set as the hammered home 11. Overall, the Lady Reddies tallied just 25 kills. Leading the team in kills was Ty Lindberg, who finished with nine kills. Lindberg also matched her kill total in digs as she came away with nine digs, which tied for the team lead with Lauren Ray. Rookie Jessica Moss was a presence at the net as she denied three Lady Cotton Blossom attacks with block solos.
The Lady Reddies wrap up their 2011 season at home on Thursday, November 3rd as they will take on Southern Arkansas University. The match, which will start at 7:00 p.m., is also Fan Appreciation night for the Lady Reddies volleyball team to show their appreciation for all of the supportive fans this season.
