FORT SMITH, Ark. – University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Volleyball defeated Texas A&M-Kingsville for the second time this season Friday, topping the Javelinas 25-16, 25-20, 20-25, 25-22 at Gayle Kaundart Arena at the Stubblefield Center.
Setter Chloe Price approached triple-double territory with 36 assists, 10 digs and seven kills while hitting .412 as the Lions outhit the Javelinas, .248-.170.
UAFS came out of the gates hitting .424 in the opening set, breaking open a two-point set with a 5-0 run behind three kills by right-side hitter Reagan Macha. A 4-0 run ballooned the lead to nine, which would end up as the final margin in the set. Macha had seven of her team-high 12 kills in the first set and hit .391 for the match.
A back-and-forth start to set two, the Lions erased a 17-16 deficit with a 7-1 run before Price helped close out the set with a kill and an assisted block with middle blocker Hannah Watkins.
After a slight delay, the Javelinas hit .297 to storm back and take set three. UAFS bounced back defensively in set four, holding TAMUK to just .073, their lowest percentage of the night.
Texas A&M-Kingsville had grabbed the early lead in set four, but UAFS came back from down 11-5 with a 9-1 run which extended to 13-3 before the Javelinas settled back in. UAFS had four blocks during the run.
While TAMUK pulled within one multiple times, the Lions never wavered before Watkins finished off the match with a kill and a block with Macha.
Outside hitter Caelyn Gunn matched Macha’s 12 kills while outside hitter Nyia Anderson added 10 kills. Both Gunn and Anderson had nine digs each. Libero Paola Fragalle had a team-high 20 digs with defensive specialist Taylor Lintz collecting 12 digs.
UAFS totaled 13 blocks on the night, seven by middle blocker Angelina Hardison and six by Watkins. Price and Anderson were also in on four blocks each.
The Lions next host Texas A&M International Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Stubblefield Center.
