TECH VOLLEYBALL FALLS AT HOME THURSDAY IN THREE GAMES TO HARDING IN GSC MATCH OF THE WEEK

        RUSSELLVILLE, Arkansas – Arkansas Tech Golden Suns Volleyball dropped its second consecutive Gulf South Conference match here Thursday, 3-0 (30-12, 30-22, 30-21), to the Harding Lady Bisons at Tucker Coliseum.

With the loss, Tech’s record fell to 20-11 overall and 6-3 in GSC play. Meanwhile, Harding improved to 20-8 overall and 7-1 in league play.

Tech didn’t get off to an ideal start in game one, as they watched Harding use a 12-2 run to pull out front 21-9. The Golden Suns couldn’t rebound, gaining only three more points the rest of the match for the 30-12 game one final.

Harding used an 11-3 run after the teams had fought to a 19 all tie in game two to take a 2-0 lead in the match. The Lady Bisons out hit the Golden Suns .289 to .061 in the game and Harding’s Manuela Nesheva had eight kills in the game two victory.

The final game was close through the midway point with Harding holding a 16-15 lead. The Lady Bisons then used a 10-3 run to push in front 26-18. Harding never relinquished the lead and went on to win the match, 3-0, with the 30-21 game three final.

Tech was led by junior middle blocker Dana Florian (Wilmington, Ill) who struck for 12 kills while hitting .500 for the match. Florian also added three solo blocks and one block assists in the contest. Junior outside hitter Racheal Urquhart (Chatham, Ont.) added nine kills and six digs in the match while junior setter Kayla Allison (Tulsa, Okla.) had 29 assists to go along with five digs.

Defensively for Tech, freshman libero Ashley Camp (Conway, Ark.) led the way with 15 digs, senior defensive specialist Courtney Collins (Joplin, Mo.) and freshman Kera Dukic each added six digs a piece.

The Lady Bisons had a strong .336 hitting percentage for the match gaining 60 kills on 137 attempts while committing only 14 errors.

Leading the offensive charge for Harding was Nesheva who had a match-high 22 kills, hitting .413. Nesheva also added 12 digs in the win. Shellie Rummer added 12 kills, Katelin Parks had 10 kills, nine digs and five block assists while Sarah Phipps tallied nine kills of her own. The Lady Bisons also had a stellar performance from setter Leah Tepe who had 50 assists and 18 digs.

Tech managed to hit only .109 for the match gaining just 35 kills on 137 attempts while being guilty of 20 errors. The Lady Bisons tallied 25 more digs than the Golden Suns and also managed to out block Tech seven to six to pick up the win.

After an off day next Tuesday, Tech will return to action on Thursday Oct. 25 for a home match against Christian Brothers. The match against CBU will be Senior Night as it is final home match of the regular season for the Golden Suns.

         Harding Box Score

-- Tech Athletics --