ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – The Henderson State volleyball team concludes the final day of the Reddie-Tiger Invitational with a pair of losses to (RV) Alaska Anchorage and Truman State. HSU finishes the tournament with a record of 2-2.
 
Against Alaska Anchorage, Violeta Mendoza Quintana led the way with 14 kills on a .419 attack percentage and 13 digs. Defensively, Trinity Sharp had a team-high 19 digs, while Brae Denton and Larkin Luke had two blocks.
 
In the second match, Sharp recorded an impressive 33 digs and four assists. Mendoza Quintana tallied a double-double with 12 kills and 13 digs. Christiane Uzoh paced the attack on a .306 attack average with 15 kills.
 
Henderson State (9-4, 1-0) remains at home for its next match when the Reddies host (RV) Harding on Tuesday, Sept. 19 at 6:30 p.m.
 
MATCH ONE: ALASKA ANCHORAGE 3, HENDERSON STATE 1
 
SET ONE
The two sides traded the first eight points, and Alaska Anchorage would be the first to find separation after a 3-0 run, 14-10. The Reddies matched the Seawolves' streak with a 7-2 stretch that had a kill from Mendoza Quintana and five UAA errors to retake the lead 17-16.
 
The next 11 points had four ties and three lead changes as the scoreboard showed 22-22. Alaska Anchorage finished the set on a 3-1 run to take the opening frame 25-23. The Reddies had 12 kills on 48 attacks, led by Mendoza Quintana with seven.
 
SET TWO
The Seawolves raced ahead to a 7-3 lead before extending their advantage to 14-7 off a 6-0 tear. Kills by Jagoda Szybinska and Denton cut Alaska Anchorage's lead to five, 15-10. The two sides went back and forth trading points, but HSU could not close the gap on Alaska Anchorage as the Seawolves led 20-14. Four straight points by UAA finished the set 25-15 and put the Seawolves ahead 2-0 in the match.
 
SET THREE
Alaska Anchorage again went ahead 4-2 in the early exchanges, but Henderson responded with a 4-0 run, which featured kills from Uzoh and Mia Sanchez, flipping the advantage to the red-and-gray, 6-4. HSU kept up the pace, outscoring the Seawolves 11-1 to stretch its lead to 17-6. Denton had three kills, while Mendoza Quintana, Jacey Tupper and Kaylon Partin each had kills.
 
Henderson State did not allow UAA to get back-to-back points in the final 11 rallies as HSU closed out the frame on a 6-1 run, 25-9. This was the first set Alaska Anchorage dropped in all four matches they competed in. HSU hit a blistering .727 with 16 kills and zero errors, while UAA hit for just .030.
 
SET FOUR
UAA and HSU traded scoring streaks to open the set as the Seawolves had three straight points before the Reddies scored four consecutive points to take the lead 4-3. The next nine points went back and forth, with three ties and two lead changes.
 
The Seawolves broke the deadlock on a 4-0 run and would stretch their lead to 21-14 after outscoring the Reddies 7-1. UAA would take the final set 25-17 and win the match 3-1.
 
MATCH TWO: TRUMAN STATE 3, HENDERSON STATE 1
 
SET ONE
HSU and TSU went point-for-point in the early moments of the opening frame, with neither side gaining an advantage 9-9. The Reddies went ahead on a 4-0 run, but the Bulldogs matched the red-and-gray with a 5-0 stretch to take the lead 18-15. Kills by Mendoza Quintana and Uzoh shifted the score back in favor of HSU on a 5-0 tear, 22-21. Uzoh logged two more kills before Denton hit home the final point of the set, 25-23, giving HSU a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
SET TWO
Kills by Denton and Sanchez had the Reddies up early in the second, 4-2. A 5-0 run by Truman State flipped the advantage to the Bulldogs, who took the lead 8-6 and would later extend it to 17-12. Three kills by Skye Johns, Luke and Jacey Tupper sparked a 6-0 run that would put the Reddies back on top 19-18.  
 
Tupper, Mendoza Quintana and Uzoh combined to give HSU set point 24-23, but the Bulldogs battled back, fighting off multiple Henderson set points before evening that match 1-1 after a 29-27 win.
 
SET THREE
Truman State kept up the momentum from the second set, racing ahead to an 8-2 lead. Henderson slashed the lead to two after kills by Luke and Tupper, 9-7. After trading points at 16-13, the Bulldogs went on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 23-13. TSU would take the third set 25-18.  
 
SET FOUR
A back-and-forth fourth set would be the second frame of the match to exceed the 25 points needed to win a set. A kill by Carson Edwards and two more from Mendoza Quintana gave the Reddies an 11-6 advantage. HSU continued to hold a four to five-point margin over  TSU at 18-14 and 20-15.
 
At 23-19, the Bulldogs went on a 5-0 run to get to set point 24-23. The Reddies defended the match point and would get to set point after kills by Luke and Uzoh, 25-24. Truman State finished the match on a 4-1 run to take the final frame 28-26.