Box Score AUSTIN, Texas – It was a "Tale of Two Middles" as ELISSA STANTON and ANNA AYCOCK combined for 22 kills to lead St. Edward's to a 3-0 sweep of Heartland Conference rival Panhandle State Saturday afternoon at the Recreation and Convocation Center. The Hilltoppers won their second-straight match, and improved to 3-2 in league play with a 25-13, 25-14, 25-15 win over the Aggies.
 
Panhandle State (3-10, 0-6 HC) held close to St. Edward's (5-8, 3-2 HC) early on as the Hilltoppers only led, 9-6. MARY KOEHLER had three kills in the opening stanza, with KELLY JIMENEZ adding two of her own. St. Edward's responded with seven-straight points, led by four kills from Stanton to open a 16-6 advantage. The Hilltoppers would cruise from there, hitting .577 as a team for a 25-13 set one victory.
 
Set two saw the Aggies hanging tight, trailing 9-7 to the home team. Stanton, along with Aycock and Jimenez all produced two kills each to lead the Hilltoppers down the stretch in set two for a 25-14 win. St. Edward's outscored the opposition, 16-7 the rest of the way.
 
In the third set, the middle hitters were on fire. Aycock registered six kills while Stanton chipped in with four of her own. They took what was a 12-8 lead and outscored the Aggies, 13-7, to win the set going away, 25-15.
 
Stanton led the team with 12 kills and produced a .550 hitting percentage, while Aycock added 10 kills and a team-high .562 hitting percentage. LOREN KELLY led the team with 15 assists, while AMY JONES added 14 assists and ASHLEY RAPPAPORT led in digs with 15.
 
St. Edward's will hit the road for a crucial two-match road trip. They will take on Dallas Baptist on Thursday at 7 p.m., then travel to Fort Smith, Ark. to take on defending Heartland Conference champion UA Fort Smith at noon on Saturday. Live video and stats will be available for both matches on each team's website.