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.
Cleveland Named SLC’s “Offensive Player of the Week”
Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information
Sam Houston senior outside hitter Kendall Cleveland has been named as Southland Conference volleyball “Offensive Player of the Week” after leading the Bearkats to a pair of road victories that landed SHSU in first place in the 2012 Southland race.
Cleveland led the team offensively as the Bearkats knocked off both Oral Roberts and Central Arkansas on the road. Central Arkansas was a perfect 11-0 at home prior to the loss.
Sam Houston extends its winning streak to 11, the longest current streak in the league this year and longest for the Bearkats as an NCAA Division I team.
The Houston, Texas (Cy Creek), native was nearly perfect in the front line with only nine hitting errors in 89 attempts.
The senior produced a career best 22 kills in the Oral Roberts victory and knocked down 14 kills in the UCA win.
Cleveland sits fifth in the Southland with 3.23 kills per set.
Sam Houston setter Tayler Gray took honorable mention honors for Southland “Defensive Player of the Week”.
The Bearkats have five matches remaining in the regular season with two this week at home at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
Sam Houston plays host to Southeastern Louisiana Thursday night at 7 p.m. and Nicholls State Saturday at 10 a.m.
Bearkats Volleyball Extends Win Streak To Ten Games
Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information
Tulsa, Oklahoma- Kendall Cleveland posted a career high 22 kills to power Sam Houston from a two sets to one deficit for a five-set win over Oral Roberts in a two-and-half hour marathon volleyball match Thursday night.
The victory set the stage for a showdown battle with Southland leader Central Arkansas Saturday afternoon in Conway.
UCA leads the league with an 11-2 conference record.
Sam Houston’s 10-match winning streak give the Kats a 10-2 league mark.
SHSU is now 15-9 for the season.
Deveney Wells-Gibson and Hailey Neisler added 19 and nine kills, respectively for the Kats.
Setter Tayler Gray assisted on 49 kills and led the Kat defense with 26 digs.
In a pattern that became the norm throughout the match, Oral Roberts jumped out to an early lead in the first set.
Down 11-6, the Kats fought back to take a 17-15 lead on a kill by Cleveland.
The Golden Eagles took control, winning 10 of the next 13 points for a one set lead.
With Sam Houston down 9-4 in the second set, Cleveland rallied the Kats again with two kills to put SHSU up 14-13.
The Bearkats led the rest of the way to even that match at a set apiece.
ORU built another 9-4 lead in the third frame but again Sam Houston caught up, taking a 16-14 lead on a kill by Kaylee Hawkins.
The Golden Eagles won 11 of the next 15 points to go up two sets to one.
Sam Houston never trailed in the fourth set as the Kats evened the match at two sets all.
Another Cleveland kill gave SHSU a 6-1 start in the frame.
Again in the final set, ORU led early, going up 9-6.
But the Kats roared back.
Each team had three match points before Cleveland tied the set 19-19 then set up SHSU’s fourth match point with a service ace.
Kaylee Hawkins put away the final kill to clinch the victory.
SHSU Volleyball Dismantles Cowgirls To Extend Win Streak
Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information
Lake Charles, La. – Led by Deveney Wells-Gibson and Kendall Cleveland who both totaled double figure kills, Sam Houston State rolled to its sixth consecutive victory with a three-set Southland Conference volleyball win over McNeese State Thursday night.
The Bearkats, now 12-9 for the season and 7-2 in league play, defeated McNeese 25-20 25-19 25-23.
The Cowgirls dropped to 6-15 for the year and 1-7 in the Southland.
The match took an hour and 24 minutes.
Five of Sam Houston’s six straight wins have been three-setters as the Kats have won 18 of the last 19 sets they have played since the streak began.
Wells-Gibson produced 18 kills while Cleveland totaled 13. Kaylee Hawkins added seven kills.
Setter Tayler Gray assisted on 45 of Sam Houston’s 47 kills and led the Bearkat defense with 10 digs. Cleveland and Wells-Gibson added eight digs apiece for same Houston.
Both the first and second sets saw three early lead changes before the Bearkats took control.
There were six lead changes in the third and final set.
Sam Houston will complete this weekend’s Southland road trip with a Saturday afternoon match against the Lamar Cardinals in Beaumont.
Bearkats Welcomes Oral Roberts With A Win
by Cheval John
Oral Roberts Eagles volleyball team didn’t know what to expect when they played Sam Houston State Bearkats on Thursday night.
During their 15 year history in the Summit League, the Eagles posted a 155-31 record, winning seven regular season titles, seven post-season tournament title, and made seven NCAA tournament appearances.
ORU joined the Southland Conference on July 1 and were looking to make a statement in their first game as a member.
Though they got off to a great start in the first set by scoring the first five out of eight points, the Bearkats settled down and dismantled the Eagles in straight sets 25-17, 25-21, 25-18.
Senior outside hitter Kendall Cleveland led the Kats with 16 kills, 5 blocks and three digs.
She produced 11 out of the teams 25 points in the third set alone with her dominant play and overwhelmed ORU.
“I just said to her (Cleveland), ‘My wish for us this weekend is for you to have a great match tonight’ and she did,” head coach Brenda Gray said.
“We wanted to show them that just because you are new. … Doesn’t mean that you will walk all over us,” Cleveland said.
“I think we got out there and proved that tonight.”
After being down 8-6, theBearkats scored the next six out of eleven points to take a 14-11 on a pair of kills by sophomore Devene Wells-Gibson, Kaylee Hawkins, and blocks by Cleveland and fifth-year senior Kim Black.
They went on to win the first set 25-17.
The Bearkats started the second set by scoring the first six out of nine points to make it 6-3.
The Eagles fought back as they went on a 11-8 run to tie the set at 14.
The Bearkats scored the next three points to take a 17-14 lead on a error by ORU, a kill by Cleveland and a block by Hawkins.
They finished them off in the second set 25-21 and went on to win the game to secure a 1-0 record in league play.
Wells-Gibson concluded the match with 11 kills and 10 digs while Black had 7 kills, 7 blocks, 6 digs and an ace.
Tatum Fredeen led the Eagles with 9 kills and Joana Gruber contributed with six.
They are now 0-1 in league play (4-8) overall.
The Bearkats host Central Arkansas on Saturday at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum at 2 p.m.