AUSTIN, Texas – St. Edward's University Volleyball opened the second of half of Heartland Conference play with a 3-1 win over Oklahoma Panhandle on Saturday in the Recreation and Convocation Center.
MIKAYLA GRILL led the Hilltoppers with 18 kills while
MIKAYLA PARKER teamed up on five assisted blocks. As a team the Toppers collected nine total blocks, eight assisted and one solo.
JACLYN BILLIE produced a team-high 22 assists in just her second game back from injury, and
MORGAN BECKHAM continued to be a force on defense with 26 digs.
Saturday's match marks St. Edward's 25th win over OPSU in program history, improving its record this season to 6-13 overall and 4-5 in the conference. Oklahoma Panhandle falls to 1-21 overall and remains winless in the league at 0-11.
"The Aggies deserve a big round of applause. They did a nice job," said head coach Mary DeJute. "They are a very athletic team that I think a lot of people under estimate, and we saw that today in set one. However we are getting some players back off of injury, which is nice to see, and I think it was a very nice team effort. Our offense worked a little better than what we have seen in the past weeks, and I thought we did a really nice job of blocking. I am proud of this team and I feel that it's only going to get better. We just have to stay focused in the moment and not get caught looking forward if he we want to make the conference tournament."
The Hilltoppers were caught sleeping in game one as Oklahoma Panhandle used an early lead to gain momentum and push to a 25-21 win. However, St. Edward's would fire right back in game two, using a 13-3 run, powered by the service game of
MORGAN BECKHAM, to surge to a convincing 25-12 win, tying the match at one game each.
After the intermission the Aggies would push the Toppers to their limit. A
KATIE MARTIN kill gave St. Edward's the opportunity to serve for game point at 24-22, but OPSU would surge back with three unanswered points to have its own opportunity to serve for the win. The Hilltoppers would not give up and proceeded to hold off six set-point opportunities from the visitors. Another kill from Martin tied the game at 30 and the sophomore hitter then served the final two points for a Hilltopper win, 32-30.
The 60-point battle would prove to be too much for the visiting Aggies, and the Hilltoppers would claim the fourth and final set with ease, 25-13.
Coach DeJute and her team will take a quick break from conference play in their next action, facing Texas A&M Commerce at home on the hilltop this Tuesday at 7 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at GoHilltoppers.com. Fans can also follow Hilltopper Athletics on Twitter at @TOPPERPRIDE and the volleyball team at @SEUVBall.
