Bearkat Volleyball Remains Undefeated In Southland Conference
Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information
Led by Deveney Wells-Gibson and Haley Neisler, Sam Houston State remains unbeaten in Southland Conference play with a four-set victory over Lamar in
Wells-Gibson totaled 20 kills and Neisler added 13 in the Bearkats’ 19-25 25-21 27-25 25-22 victory over the Cardinals.
The win keeps defending Southland champion Sam Houston in first place in the 2013 league race with a perfect 6-0 record.
Winners of five consecutive matches and seven of their last nine contests, SHSU now stands 9-6 for the year.
Lamar became the first Southland team to take a set off the Bearkats, breaking a 10-10 tie with a 15-9 run.
The Cardinals held an early 12-9 lead in the second set.
Tied 15-15, Krista Koopman came up with two kills to start a 10-6 run to pick up the set.
Sam Houston saw a 17-10 lead in the third stanza erased as Lamar tied the match 23-23.
Four points later, back-to-back kills by Lauren Bohlen and Neisler earned a second set for the Kats.
The Bearkats earned the victory rallying from behind one last time to take the third set and the match 25-22.
Breanna Homer and Tayler Gray totaled 23 and 13 digs, respectively.
Gray assisted on 50 of Sam Houston’s 56 kills.
The Bearkat volleyball continues its Southland road swing next week, playing Thursday at Incarnate Word and Saturday at Abilene Christian.
Sam Houston’s next home match is Thursday, Oct. 17, against New Orleans.
Bearkat Volleyball Advances To Semifinals In SLC Tournament
Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information
Led by Deveney Wells-Gibson with 16 kills, Sam Houston defeated Nicholls State to advance to the semifinals of the Southland Conference Volleyball Tournament.
The tournament is being hosted by Central Arkansas in Conway, Arkansas.
No. 2 Sam Houston defeated No. 6 Nicholls State 25-22 25-12 25-19.
The Kats will face the winner of the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Oral Roberts matchup.
The Southland Player of the Year, Wells-Gibson put up a dominant performance against the Colonels with her 27th double figure kill performance of the year.
Friday’s first set had 14 ties and 10 lead changes before the Kats finished it off 25-22.
In the second set, Sam Houston led from the beginning after jumping out to an early 5-0 lead.
Nicholls found itself within four at 11-7, but the Bearkats finished the set on a 14-5 run to win the second set, 25-12.
The third set was much like the first as both teams tied 14 teams and exchanged the lead five times, but Sam Houston finished the match on a 9-3 run to win the set 25-19 and finish off the sweep. Wells-Gibson led the charge with six kills in the final set.
Kaylee Hawkins, who was named honorable mention All-Southland, added 12 kills for the Bearkats.
Second team All-Southland member, Kim Black had six kills and four blocks for the Kats.
Tayler Gray, who was the second team All-Southland setter, had 37 assists.
For Nicholls, Jennifer Brandt and Sarah Terry each led the team with six kills.
Sam Houston advances to play the winner of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Oral Roberts, which begins at 1:30 p.m. today.
The semifinal match will commence at 11 a.m. tomorrow at the Farris Center and will be streamed on the Southland Digital Network.
Bearkat Volleyball Team Wins 13th Straight Game
by Cheval John
The Sam Houston State Bearkat volleyball team extends their winning streak to 13 games as they swept Nicholls State Colonels 25-21, 25-13, 25-16.
The win streak is the longest since the Bearkats moved up to the NCAA Division I in 1986.
Three Bearkats (13-2 SLC play, 18-9 overall) totaled double-digit kills; senior outside hitter Kendall Cleveland (13), senior outside hitter Kaylee Hawkins (12) and sophomore outside hitter Devene Wells-Gibson (11).
Both teams fought tooth and nail early in the first set as they were five ties and two lead changes.
With the Colonels (5-12 SLC play, 10-18 overall) leading 14-9, the Bearkats scored the next eight out of ten points to take a 17-16 lead and went on to win the first set 25-21.
It seemed as if the second set was going to be the same as both teams traded a total of six points to open it at 3.
Then the Bearkats exploded for 9 straight points to lead it 12-3 and cruised to a 25-13 win.
They kept up the momentum in the third set as they scored the first six of the seven points on a kill and three service aces by Wells-Gibson and a kill by Hawkins.
They continued to dominate the Colonels as with their defense that allowed them to extend their lead and eventually take the third set and the match.
Setter Tayler Gray had 37 assists and 20 digs.
The Bearkats go on the road on Tuesday as they face Northwestern State.