Texas A&M University-Commerce’s Lions volleyball team won their match against Cameron the University Aggies 3-1 on Sunday, October 25, pushing their record to 11-12 overall, and 3-7 in conference.
The Lions started off with the lead in set one 3-0. The teams exchanged leads a few times but the Lions gained the advantage, forcing the Aggies to use both of their time outs, and went on to win 25-18.
Set two started off with the Aggies winning, but ended up a close competition throughout the game. Sophomore Rachel Robertson hit a strategic kill to tie the game 9-9 and allowed the Lions to create some momentum in their favor. Then, down 22-20, the Lions called a time out to regroup. From that point, the Lions and Aggies went back and forth with the lead until the Lions finally won the set 30-28.
Coming into the third set, the Lions offense slowed despite getting the first points on the board. Down 10-4, the Lions called a time out and were able to rally back and bring the score within one. But the Aggies prevailed in the third set, winning 25-20 and forcing a fourth set.
In the fourth set, the Lions took the lead and maintained it throughout the set. Robertson with, 12 total kills and Senior Terra Ousley, with 11 total kills helped lead the team to a 25-17 victory to clinch the match.
“The win is a good thing because it will contribute to going to the conference tournament,” Freshman Chelsea Simonton said.
While the Lions were successful in adding another match to the win column, Head Coach Craig Case knows they still have places where they need to improve defensively.
“We have got to serve better,” Case said. “We are not used to long rallies and we are not putting enough pressure on first contact.”
Case and his players are both seeing some of the same problems that need adjusting on the team.
“We could improve our service for sure,” Sophomore Reagan Hayes said.
The win at home is another factor that Case is proud of regarding his young team, composed of 12 freshman and sophomores and only four juniors and seniors.
“We are really strong on the road so playing well at home is a big positive,” Case said. “The thing we did really well is that we played steady.”