Box Score ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – The Henderson State University volleyball team's comeback fell just short against Arkansas-Monticello (8-9, 1-3 GAC) after being down, 2-0, but fell 15-12 in the fifth set at the Duke Wells Center on Tuesday evening.
In an exciting fifth set, Henderson State (1-11, 0-4 GAC) held an 8-7 lead at the switch but the Blossoms stormed back and eventually won the last three points in a row to secure their first conference win.
Both outside hitters,
Katrina Goulbourne (Jr., Visalia, Calif.) and
Sarah Williams (Jr., Conroe, Texas) recorded double-digit kills to lead the match with 11 apiece. Blocking was the name of the game for both teams as UAM was a beast at the net with 17.0 total blocks. HSU added 8.0, with
Jessica Moss (Jr., Garland, Texas) led the way with two solo and four assists.
Overall, the Reddies downed 36 kills but 36 attack errors left them at a .000 attack percentage. Monticello had 48 kills, hitting at a .129.
The first and second set was dominated by Arkansas-Monticello as they took sets one and two easily, 25-13 and 25-12.
After being down 1-0 in set three, the Lady Reddies fed off the service error of Brittney Beckham. UAM continued to make errors on their end and HSU found itself with a 4-1 lead. Ahead by one, Henderson State called a timeout as Monticello scored three straight points. Another timeout by head coach
Rhonda Thigpen at 11-11 was just was the doctor ordered. The Lady Reddies scored seven straight points and took a 17-14 lead. Moss received a perfect assist from setter
Taylor Thompson (Jr., Yuba City, Calif.) and slammed down the kill. Rattled by that point, UAM committed back-to-back attack errors and Henderson State held its one of their biggest leads of the night at 20-15.
Williams found the empty court on two straight attempts and the Lady Reddies were only three points away from taking the third set.
Cheyenne Derr (Sr., Mansfield, Ark.) and
Jami Jackson (Kennett, Mo.) was monstrous at the net and posted a huge block on the Blossom's attack leader, Tori Bozzo and put the Reddies at set point. Bozzo could not bounce back and eventually hit the ball outside the white lines to give HSU the set, 25-19.
Feeding off the energy of the last set and of the crowd, Henderson State mustered up seven straight points after trailing 10-7 to take the four point lead 14-10.
A yellow card for UAM fueled the Lady Reddies fire even more throughout the set. UAM fought back and evened the score at 21-21. With Williams and Thompson recording kills, Jackson and Derr with another block and two Blossoms errors, HSU forced the deciding fifth set with a 25-21 win.
Bozzo for the Blossoms served the ball just deep as Henderson State took the first point in the fifth set. Thompson dropped a kill out of the reach of the UAM defender and took a 5-3 lead, forcing Monticello's coach, Peter Cruz, to call a timeout.
Henderson State utilized both their timeouts at 10-10 and 11-12. Moss and Williams posted a block to even the score at 12 but that was the last point the Reddies put on the scoreboard and fell 15-12.
The Henderson State Lady Reddies will hit the mid-way point of its five-game home stance at they will host Southern Nazarene for a Great American Conference match on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 1 p.m.
For the latest HSU news and results, be sure to visit
www.HSUSports.com.