Match #10: No. 15 Texas A&M 3, Stephen F. Austin 0
S1: A&M, 25-13; S2: A&M, 25-9; S3: A&M, 25-22
Records: Texas A&M (5-5, 0-0), Stephen F. Austin (4-6, 0-0)
Box Score
Back in the win column.
No. 15 Texas A&M volleyball took down SFA in a swift three-set sweep, as the Aggies clinched their fourth home win of the season.
“I’m happy with the win,” A&M head coach Jamie Morrison said. “I’m happy that we figured out a way to do that, but one of the things we talked about before the match was holding ourselves to a higher standard, regardless of who we’re playing. I thought we did that at times, but we need to be more consistent.”
The Maroon & White showed flashes in all aspects of the game, totaling 43 kills, 52 digs and 10.5 blocks across the match. A shaky third set did leave a sour taste in the mouths of Morrison & Co., despite the win.
Sophomore setter Kirra Musgrove made her presence known at the net all night long, setting a career high in blocks with five and 35 assists.
“I think she’s the most physical setter at the net in terms of attacking,” Morrison said. “I want her to be the most physical setter at the net blocking. It’s something we’ve poured into a little bit over the last two weeks.”
Fifth-year outside hitter Natalie Ring continued her attacking dominance, contributing to a team-high 11 kills and posting her season-high hitting percentage of .400.
Freshman libero Gabi Rodriguez has continued to grow, posting 17 digs against the Ladyjacks, a career third-best.
Even in a sweep, the match wasn’t perfect for the Ags.
Service errors remain a point of emphasis, with A&M not improving much from its nine-error night against No. 6 Wisconsin to seven against SFA.
Passing also struggled at times for the Ags, not finding a solid rhythm early in the first set and throughout the third.
“The first tough setup sets up everything,” Morrison said. “I thought our offense was really clunky in the first, and I just thought we couldn’t get into a rhythm from a passing standpoint.”
After a slow start to Set 1, the Aggies dialed things in, going on a five-point run led by back-to-back Castle blocks that forced an SFA timeout. That timeout did little to slow A&M’s growing momentum, as they promptly wrapped up the frame with a 25-13 opening set win.
The scoring streaks continued in Set 2, with the Aggies going on five runs of at least three points each. Ring dominated to close out the set, formulating three straight kills to propel A&M to a 25-9 set victory.
Amaré Hernandez got a chance to showcase her abilities in the second stanza. In her first chance at two full sets, the McAllen native went for a career-high seven kills, hitting at a .286 clip.
“A rising tide carries the ship; the people on this team will continue to improve, and Amaré is one of them,” Morrison said. “I’m happy she got a chance to get in the spotlight today, and I’m happy it was noticed.”
SFA got back in the swing of things in Set 3, keeping the frame competitive down to the wire. The Aggies stayed resilient, though, capitalizing on multiple errors to conclude the final set 25-22.
A&M did a good job stifling SFA's offensive plans, holding them to a combined .020 hitting percentage on the night.
After a chance to tune up, the Aggies turn their attention to No. 20 Creighton. A&M will travel up to Omaha on Sunday, Sept. 20, with first serve slated for 4 p.m. CT.
