Box Score

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – In the epic Battle of the Ravine Week, the 2013 Henderson State University Lady Reddie volleyball team and the Ouachita Baptist Tigers were in the midst and madness of the historic clash between the two schools Thursday evening.
 
In a five-set thriller in the Duke Wells Center, packed full of HSU and OBU fans, the Tigers (15-11, 8-6 GAC) edged out the Lady Reddies in the most exciting match of the season, 3-2.
 
Henderson State honored the outside hitter from Mansfield, Ark., Cheyenne Derr, prior to the match to begin the festivities. The four-year letterwinner at HSU leaves a historic mark on the program, recording an impressive 461 digs. Derr was an all-around player, also adding 321 kills, 188 blocks and 31 aces to her resume.
 
The first set started in favor of OBU, who scored four straight points. Junior Sarah Williams (Conroe, Texas) slammed down her first of 22 kills, to put the first point on the board for Henderson State.
 
As emotions were still high from the pre-match ceremonies, HSU (4-24, 0-14 GAC) was unable to find its mojo in set one, falling 25-12.
 
HSU came out of the huddle in set two with a different intensity. Junior Jessica Moss (Garland, Texas) and Williams combined for back-to-back kills, setting the tone for the entire set. Dead even in the second set 7-7, OBU capitalized on a couple of Lady Reddies errors, forcing head coach Rhonda Thigpen to call a timeout.
 
Henderson State battled back and retook the lead at 16-14, causing OBU to call their first timeout. Junior setter Taylor Thompson (Yuba City, Calif.) stamped an ace in the scorebook, reiterating that HSU was not backing down. A rivalry like this trump the records both teams displayed heading into the match.
 
Juniors Jami Jackson (Kennett, Mo.) and Katrina Goulbourne (Visalia, Calif.) stuffed OBU's kill leader, Abby Pickett to take a 20-17 lead. HSU rode the back of the Williams for the last three points, as she found the open court and evened the match 1-1 with a 25-21 win.
 
Ouachita Baptist retook the match lead, 2-1, after posting a .290 attack percentage on 13 kills in set three.
 
Fired up again, HSU once again dominated the opening points in the set. Moss with a kill, combined with a block with Thompson, easily brought the emotions back into the game.
 
The Lady Reddies kept the lead for the entire set, not even allowing OBU to even it up once. HSU recorded 19 kills in the set, six coming from Williams, five from Moss and four from Jackson. Henderson State scored the final three of four points to take it into the fifth and final set.
 
Determining the winner was not going to be easy for either team. With the each crowd cheering for their respected team, the match came down to the final three points. HSU took the 8-5 lead as the teams switched sides. With the significant of each point, OBU called a timeout at 12-9, as the Tigers trailed. Henderson State unraveled and OBU evened the game at 12-12. The Tigers scratched through the noise and finalized the game, taking the next three points for a 15-12 win.
 
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