HUNTSVILLE, Texas—McNeese volleyball captured the Sam Houston Invitational title with a five-set (25-16, 25-19, 11-25, 12-25, 15-9) win over Southern Illinois Saturday to conclude opening weekend with a 2-1 record. Freshman
Ava Henry was named the tournaments MVP while senior
D'Nari Mills was named to the all-tournament team.
I'm really proud of the weekend we had," said head coach
Sasha Karelov. "Our backs were against the wall and the girls rose to the challenge.
Ava Henry was unstoppable, and
D'Nari Mills came up with big kills when we needed her most.
Lauren Fuller was the steady presence we needed in serve-receive and
Summer Anderson was outstanding, defensively. Overall, I'm really pleased with the effort and energy. This group isn't even close to reaching their potential as a team, which is so exciting!
McNeese returns home Thursday through Saturday to host its own Cowgirl Classic.
SET-BY-SET SCORE vs. SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
- Set 1: McNeese 25, S. Illinois 16
- Set 2: McNeese 25, S. Illinois 19
- Set 3: S. Illinois 25, McNeese 11
- Set 4: S. Illinois 25, McNeese 18
- Set 5: McNeese 15, S. Illinois 9
STAT LEADERS vs. SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
MATCH NOTES
• Ended tournament play with a 2-1 record with wins over Tulane and Southern Illinois, both five set wins
•
D'Nari Mills led the Cowgirls in kills (19) for the third straight match
• Mills ended the match with her first double-double (19 kills, 11 digs) of the season
•
Jordan Gamble led McNeese with an individual season high six blocks
• After recording a career high in digs Friday,
Lauren Fuller set a new career high against Southern Illinois with 13 digs.
• Three Cowgirls recorded double figure digs
•
Kinga Ziolkowska led McNeese with four aces
•
Ava Henry was named tournament MVP and
D'Nari Mills was named to the All-Tournament Team
RECORD SETTERS
•
Lauren Fuller recorded a new career high with 13 digs in the win over Southern Illinois
•
Summer Anderson recorded a career high 20 digs in the win over Southern Illinois
NEXT MATCH
• McNeese will face Alcorn at 6 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 4 on the first day of the Cowgirl Classic
UPCOMING MATCHES
Sept. 4-6 Cowgirl Classic
Sept. 4 vs. Alcorn (6 p.m.)
Sept. 5 vs. UT-Arlington (6 p.m.)
Sept. 6 vs. UL-Monroe (1 p.m.)
Sept. 11-16 at Florida A&M Tournament
Sept. 19-20 at Houston Cougar Challenge
Sept. 25 at Southeastern*
Sept. 27 at New Orleans*
Oct. 2 at Houston Christian*
Oct. 4 at Incarnate Word*
Oct. 9 Lamar*
Home Match
*-Southland Conference Match
