Texas A&M
19-8, 11-5SEC
Missouri
16-16, 7-10SEC
Aggies Celebrate Senior Day with Sweep of Missouri
Nov 23, 2014 | Volleyball
The Aggies outhit Missouri, .349 to .103, and three A&M players posted double-digit kills as A&M won its fourth consecutive match and improved to 19-8 overall and 11-5 in SEC matches. In addition, the Aggies completed the season series sweep against their former Big 12 Conference foes, having defeated Missouri, 3-1, earlier this month in Columbia, Mo.
Missouri, the 2013 SEC champion, falls to 16-16 overall, including 7-10 in conference matches only.
Angela Lowak, Emily Hardesty and Jazzmin Babers had 10 kills each to pace the A&M offense. Setter Stephanie Aiple dished out 37 assists to surpass 1,000 assists for the season and also had 10 digs to post her team-leading seventh double-double of the season. Freshman libero Amy Nettles led all players with 15 digs, and Babers had a match-high five blocks.
A&M never trailed the entire match, and there were only two ties throughout the entire contest. The first tie happened at 11-11 in the opening set before the Aggies broke away as Babers posted one of her four kills in the frame to begin a 9-1 surge. Missouri, which hit .000 in the set, got a kill and a block to get within 20-14 but then committed three consecutive errors, including an attack attempt that got stuff blocked by Shelby Sullivan and Ashlie Reasor. Missouri got a kill but was whistled for being in the net on the ensuing play, putting the Aggies at set point, 24-15. Sullivan then capped the win with a kill.
The Aggies hit .395 to cruise to a 25-17 win in the second set and take a 2-0 lead into the intermission. A&M jumped out to a 5-1 lead and continued to hold a four-point advantage at 12-8 before the Aggies began to widen the gap. A kill by Sullivan followed by back-to-back kills by Lowak gave A&M a 15-8 lead. A&M later used another 3-point run – two Sullivan kills and a Hardesty ace – to build its largest lead at 23-13. Missouri rallied late, outscoring A&M 4-1 and fighting off two set points before hitting into the net to end the set.
The third set was tied at 1-1 when Missouri self-destructed, committing six consecutive errors. A&M, which outhit the Tigers .359 to .075 in the final stanza, continued to pull away, getting a kill from four different players during a 4-0 run that put the Aggies up, 20-9. A&M went on to lead 23-12 when Aggie freshman outside hitter Kiara McGee pounded down back-to-back kills to close out the match.
A&M's lone senior, Sydney Wilhelm, who joined the team this season as a fifth-year senior after player her previous two seasons on the A&M club team, was honored following the match along with athletic training master students, Nia LeBlanc and Kelly Stoots.
Texas A&M closes out the regular season this week with a pair of road matches in the Magnolia State. The Aggies face Mississippi State, Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Newell-Grissom Building in Starkville, and then play their regular season finale at Ole Miss, Friday at 4 p.m. at the Gillom Sports Center in Oxford. A&M is a combined 11-0 in the all-time series against both Mississippi schools.
The 64-team NCAA tournament field will be announced Sunday, Nov. 30 at 7:30 p.m. on ESPNU. The Aggies are expecting to make their fourth consecutive appearance in the tournament.
Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M volleyball. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M volleyball team on Facebook and on Twitter by following @AggieVolleyball.
Texas A&M Post-match Quotes:
Head Coach Laurie Corbelli:
On how the team played today against Missouri…
“I'm really pleased with the execution today. We've been really hounding the team with serve-receive. It's so individual with technique and timing and discipline of the move. Some of the passes today were some of the best we've had in a long time. It allowed us to really distribute the ball. It makes it really hard to defend when you've got lots of hitters going. We didn't make a lot of errors which is a great sign for us here at the end of the season. The team mode on the court was very relaxed and very confident and filled with things that we talk about trying to get to. They got to it today.”
On how the team has improved…
“Sometimes when you're in the midst of it, you don't see the improvement as much as the others that see us every other week. Yet when I see a match like today's, I really do see the improvement. I see it mostly in the numbers. I am seeing it now. Coaches, we're usually the ones that are most critical of our groups, watching our team with a very critical eye, so it's a joy for me to see them really relaxed and execute the game that they train every day for. That's really one of the rewards of coaching--when it all comes together. This is the perfect time for us to have it all come together.”
On challenges of finishing the season on the road…
“It's going to be a great challenge. I really like it, to tell you the truth. It's going to command our best. Not only at Mississippi State where we haven't seen them at all this year, however, then to go to Oxford and play Ole Miss, a team that's very, very physical. They have been really dynamite at home. It's going to require that our team give everything we did today and more. We have to get that going on the court. It's great for us and challenging us to get us ready for post season. I think my team will rise to the challenge, continue to improve and get ready for the playoffs.”
Senior outside hitter Sydney Wilhelm:
On how special it has been being the only senior on the team...
“It was incredible. It's been such a great opportunity. I'm sad to see it go so soon. I couldn't have asked for a better team to share it with, a better night, a better game we played. It was amazing and everything was perfect today.”
How you felt you played in the third set and overall…
“I think I played okay. Overall the team played really well, and that's what really matters.”
Advice that you would give, or something the team can remember you by…
“The thing that I want them to remember me by would be to play relaxed, and I think the biggest thing is to have fun. Just be fearless. Go out there and play your heart out. I think a lot of the younger girls can learn from that.”
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