October 24, 2003
No. 21 Texas A&M began its second half of the Big 12 Conference schedule with a 30-15, 30-17, 30-23 victory over rival Texas in front of an all-time record crowd of 3,778 at G. Rollie White Coliseum.
"The team was very ready tonight," A&M coach Laurie Corbelli said. "We've been through some adversity lately with injuries, and we've also been going back and forth experimenting with a 5-1 and 6-2 offense, so it is nice to see people stepping up and gaining more confidence in the team, the system and themselves."
The Aggies extended their season-high winning streak to six matches and improved to 16-5 overall and 8-3 in Big 12 play by hitting a season-high .357 for the match. Laura Jones led the charge for A&M with a season-high .560 hitting percentage, posting a match-high 15 kills and only one error in 25 attempts.
Melissa Munsch had a big night at the service line as she tied an A&M record and a career record with six aces, including five in the second game. She also tied teammate Rebecca Wynalda for match-high honors in digs with 10.
"When our serving and passing are getting taken care of, then everything else falls into place," Corbelli said.
The win, which also marked the Aggies sixth straight home victory over the Horns, avenged a heartbreaking five-game loss in Austin earlier this season after Texas rallied from a two-game deficit to upend then-No. 22 A&M.
Texas (10-10, 5-6 Big 12) was affected tonight by the absence of starting middle blocker Brandy Magee, who was tending to personal matters following a death in the family earlier in the week.
"Tonight wasn't about volleyball for our team," Texas coach Jerritt Elliott said. "Our minds and our hearts weren't here tonight. They were with Brandy and her family. We wanted to come out and play the match for her, but A&M is just too good."
The Horns scored the first point of the match on an ace but it was the only lead they would hold for the night as the Aggies held them to a .126 hitting efficiency, Texas' second-lowest of the season. In addition, the Horns, who outblocked the Aggies, 15-4, in the first meeting of the season, tallied only four blocks to A&M's 10.
Bethany Howden led the Horns offensively with nine kills, and Erin Larson led in digs with nine.
A&M freshman Christi Hahn saw action against her older sister, Texas starting middle blocker Kathy Hahn, for the first time, playing in one game and posting one kill and one block. The elder Hahn had eight kills and two blocks in three games for the Horns.
The Aggies return to action Saturday, Nov. 1 when they face No. 24 Missouri in Columbia. First serve is at 7 p.m. at the Hearnes Center.