October 13, 2006
No. 10 Texas avoided an upset against rival Texas A&M, defeating the Aggies, 30-23, 23-30, 30-22, 30-17, at G. Rollie White Coliseum in this year?â„¢s first competition in the State Farm Lone Star Showdown.
A boisterous crowd of 3,555 ?- the second largest home crowd in A&M volleyball history -- watched as Destinee Hooker put down 18 kills to lead a group of five Texas attackers to reach double figures in kills. Ashley Engle added 14 for the Longhorns, and Jennifer Todd and Dariam Acevedo pitched in 12 kills apiece. Leticia Armstrong also reached digits with 11 kills as Texas tallied 70 kills and hit. .301, the highest hitting percentage by an A&M opponent this season.
In addition, the Horns posted 11.5 blocks to A&M?â„¢s six and held the Aggies to 56 kills and a .158 hitting percentage to earn their fourth consecutive win against the Aggies.
?Obviously we are disappointed in the way we played,? A&M coach Laurie Corbelli said. ?It?â„¢s a match that we typically are really up for and ready to execute, but I didn?â„¢t feel like we ever really executed like we know how.?
A&M held a narrow 4-3 lead early in the opening game before Texas went on an 8-1 run. A&M played catch-up and tied the score at 17 and again at 19 but was unable to retake the lead. Texas, which outhit A&M, .204 to .020 in the frame, began to pull away after an A&M attack went into the net and the Longhorns followed with a block. Texas went on to take a 28-23 advantage and then got a kill from Hooker and a block by Hooker and Armstrong to end the game.
The Aggies regrouped and never trailed in Game 2. The score was tied for the sixth and final time at 6-all before A&M outscored Texas, 10-4.The Aggies, who outhit Texas .394 to .162 in the game, took their biggest lead at 22-16 after a Longhorn attack sailed wide. Texas got within 28-23 when Mary Batis and Christi Hahn blocked a Hooker attack to put the Aggies serving for the game. A&M evened the match on the following play as Longhorn setter Michelle Moriarty was whistled for a back row attack when she went after a pass that hung above the net.
Texas got several tip and off-speed kills during a 5-1 run in Game 3 to break a 9-9 tie. The Aggies got within two points at 14-12 but could get no closer. Texas, which hit .367 and posted 22 kills while holding A&M to 15 kills and a .275 hitting percentage, later went on a 6-1 run to take a commanding 24-16 lead. The Horns built their biggest lead at 28-19 following back-to-back kills by Acevedo. Texas then served into the net, but Todd came back with a kill to put the Horns serving for the game. Kelly Stanton held off two game points, posting a solo block and then teaming with Kelsey Bryant for another block, before Hooker put down her sixth kill of the game to give the Horns a 2-1 lead in the match.
?Normally we aren?â„¢t as caught off guard with off-speed (attacks),? Corbelli said. ?To start game three, that shook us up a little bit. It was a nice change of pace that they did on attack, but we didn?â„¢t respond very well. It kind of caught us off guard. And that is what you get when you have a very young team on the floor.?
A&M struggled offensively in the fourth and final game and was held to a .000 hitting percentage. Texas, which hit .516 in the stanza, took advantage of the miscues and jumped out to a 6-1 lead. The Longhorns later scored five unanswered points to extend their lead to 24-13. The teams then exchanged points until Texas notched consecutive points as Hooker put down her seventh kill of the game and Hall followed with an ace to put the Horns ahead, 28-16. Hahn put down a kill for A&M before back-to-back kills by Acevedo and Armstrong ended the match.
Hahn, A&M?â„¢s only senior, led the Aggies with 14 kills and led all players with a .481 hitting percentage. Sophomore Lindsey Yon (12 kills 11 digs) and freshmen Batis (10 kills, 11 digs) and Courtnee Rhodes (44 assists, 13 digs) all tallied double-doubles in the loss, and freshman libero Zanny Castillo led all players with 18 digs.
?I like the attitude of this team more than anything I?â„¢ve seen, and I love the work ethic and the character of them,? Corbelli said about her group. ?They are awesome, but they are just young. We just have to realize we didn?â„¢t execute and move on.?
A&M drops to 9-8 overall and 2-7 in the Big 12 Conference. Texas improves to 12-4, 7-2 and extends its winning streak to a season-best four matches
The Aggies conclude the first half of the Big 12 schedule Wednesday when they take on Iowa State in Ames. First serve is at 6:30 p.m. at Hilton Coliseum.
Short Box
UT def. Texas A&M 30-23, 23-30, 30-22, 30-17
UT (12-4, 7-2 Big 12) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Hooker, Destinee 18-0-2; Engle, Ashley 14-1-4; Acevedo, Dariam 12-0-4; Todd, Jennifer 12-0-4; Armstrong, Leticia 11-0-5; Moriarty, Michelle 3-1-2; Hall, Kiley 0-2-0; Paolini, Lauren 0-0-1; Totals 70-4-11.5. (Assists) - Moriarty, Michelle 53. (Dig leaders) - Jennings, Alyson 13; Engle, Ashley 11; Kisner, Heather 10; Acevedo, Dariam 10; Moriarty, Michelle 10.
Texas A&M (9-8, 2-7 Big 12) (Kills-aces-blocks) - Hahn, Christi 14-1-1; Yon, Lindsey 12-0-0; Batis, Mary 10-0-2; Bryant, Kelsey 9-1-2; Stanton, Kelly 7-0-5; Ammerman, Sarah 2-0-0; Rhodes, Courtnee 1-0-0; Castillo, Zanny 1-0-0; Totals 56-2-6.0. (Assists) - Rhodes, Courtnee 44. (Dig leaders) - Castillo, Zanny 18; Rhodes, Courtnee 13; Yon, Lindsey 11; Batis, Mary 11.
Site: College Station, TX (G. Rollie White Col.)
Date: Oct 13, 2006 Attend: 3555 Time: 2:00
Referees: Mark Noble, Dan Apol