HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The team's record was not indicative of the play from the Alcorn State University volleyball program this weekend as the Lady Braves went 1-4 at the second of two SWAC Round-Ups, hosted by Alabama A&M.
The Lady Braves (8-17, 4-10 SWAC) opened the round-up with a 3-2 win over Texas Southern before falling to Southern 3-1, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 3-1, Grambling State 3-2 and Prairie View A&M 3-2.
"It's tough when you play five close matches but only win one. We're disappointed with the outcome but we came here and competed," said Alcorn head coach
Chelsey Lucas. "This program has come so far in just two years, but we have to find a way to win these tight matches. We're getting close to where we need to be but we're not there just yet."
On the weekend, senior
Alondra Rivera Modesto led the team with 61 kills (2.65 k/s). Junior Barbara Cabo distributed 141 assists (6.13 a/s) and sophomore
Fiapaipai Iosia dug up 68 (3.09 d/s) balls.
Alcorn entered the weekend ranked fourth in the country in aces per set with 1.89. That number will go up after the Lady Braves tallied 56 aces in 23 sets for a 2.43 average. Iosia led the way with 13 aces over the five matches, while freshman
Jurnee Calhoun had 10.
Alcorn will have a full week off before it takes the court again next Sunday on the road at Alabama A&M at 4 p.m.
Match 1: Alcorn 3, TSU 2
The Lady Braves started the weekend on a high note after defeating the Lady Tigers 13-25, 25-13, 18-25, 25-23, 18-16.
Freshman
Sydney Joseph turned in a monster performance with 16 kills and a .414 hitting percentage. Cabo dished out 28 assists, and Iosia notched 13 digs.
After dropping the first set 15-13, the Lady Braves got hot in the second. The score was tied 4-4 when Alcorn went on a big 13-4 run to take a commanding 17-8 lead. The spurt featured kills by sophomore
Simone Barren. A kill by Joseph made it 23-11, and a spike by Cabo ended the frame.
The back-and-forth match saw TSU win the third 25-18 before Alcorn responded with a desperation run late in the fourth. The Lady Tigers led 23-21 and were two points away from ending the match. With their backs against the wall, the Lady Braves reeled off four straight points including a kill by sophomore
Daharri Thompkins to win the set 25-23 and stay alive.
An intense fifth set saw neither team lead by more than two points the entire way. TSU had a match point at 14-13, but Alcorn again would not go down as Barren evened it with a kill. After a kill by freshman
Havanna Garza made it 15-14 Alcorn, TSU kept the match going on a kill by Jada Hall. A spike by Lewis gave the Lady Braves a second match point at 17-16, and it ended on an attack error by TSU.
Match 2: Southern 3, Alcorn 1
Alcorn kept the momentum going early in its second match and won the first set 25-16, but the Jaguars came back to win the next three 25-22, 25-22, 25-18.
Rivera Modesto and Joseph both reached double-figures in kills with 13 and 10, respectively. Cabo aided the attack with 26 assists, and Iosia registered 10 digs.
The first set was tied 6-6 when Alcorn leaped in front by winning the next four points including an ace by Lewis and a kill by Cabo. SU could never really get back in it, and a bad set on the Jaguars extended Alcorn's lead to 20-11. Another ball handling error on SU ended the frame.
In the second, Alcorn trailed 20-18 when it won four straight points including kills by Rivera Modesto, Joseph and Barren to go up 22-20. However, after the Jaguars called timeout, they came back to win five straight points and snatch the frame to avoid going down two sets.
Another tight frame came in the third as Alcorn led 21-19 after an ace by junior
Melinda Perrilloux. Though again, the Jaguars got hot late and won the next five points to take a 24-21 advantage. The frame ended on a kill by Jada Carter.
The fourth set was even at 16 before SU pulled away. A 4-0 made it 20-16 Southern, and a pair of aces by Paige Hall changed the score to 22-17. The final two points came on attack errors by Alcorn.
Match 3: UAPB 3, Alcorn 1
The match started with two really close sets before the Lady Lions were able to pull away after the intermission. The final scores were in favor of UAPB 26-24, 25-27, 25-14, 25-10.
Rivera Modesto hit for a .217 mark after slamming 11 attacks on 23 attempts. Cabo recorded 20 assists while Calhoun had seven. Iosia submitted 20 digs and a trio of assists.
Alcorn trailed big 20-14 in the first after making a run. An ace by Lewis and a couple of kills by Joseph cut it to 20-18. Alcorn came back to tie it 21-21 on the serve of sophomore
Jasmine Chambers. Still tied 24-24, the Lady Braves handed it back on a service error, and UAPB won it on a kill by Kendalle Howard.
An extremely tight second set had the score tied 22-22 without any big runs by either side. UAPB threatened to go up two sets after taking a 24-22 lead, but Alcorn came back on a kill by Rivera Modesto and a block-assist by Thompkins and Rivera Modesto. The Lady Braves ended up winning the final five points of the frame as another kill by Rivera Modesto and a UAPB attack error finished the frame.
Alcorn's attacking just wasn't there in the last two sets. The Lady Braves hit -.115 in the third and -.057 in the fourth. Conversely, UAPB posted a .320 in the third and .333 in the fourth to run away with it.
Match 4: Grambling 3, Alcorn 2
Grambling ultimately prevailed in a five-set thrilled 11-25, 25-22, 25-16, 18-25, 15-8.
Alcorn's attacked was evenly dispersed as Joseph had 10 kills, Rivera Modesto nine, Thomplins six and Lewis six. Three Lady Braves reached double-figures in digs including Iosia with 17, sophomore
Kaylyn Latin with 11 and freshman
Mariah Wilmoth with 10. Iosia notched five service aces. Cabo ended with 33 assists.
The Lady Braves came out red-hot and won the first six points of the match on Iosia's serve. An ace by Calhoun made it 14-3 Alcorn. GSU never could make a run, and a block-assist by Barren and Joseph kept the Lady Braves ahead 23-8. The frame ended on a kill by Rivera Modesto.
GSU led nearly the entire way in the second. A kill by Joseph had Alcorn trailing 17-14, but GSU went back up 20-15 after a block. The Lady Braves tried to make a push at the very end and were down 24-22 after a block by Thompkins, but after the Tigers called timeout, the ended it on a kill by Chasity Nicks.
The teams traded frames after the intermission before gearing up for the fifth. Alcorn got off to a very slow start in the final set and just couldn't recover after going down 8-0. The closest the Lady Braves came was 12-8 after a kill by Lewis, but the run halted after a service error. GSU won it on a kill by Talicia Lang.
Match 5: PVAMU 3, Alcorn 2
A streaky final match saw the Lady Braves come back from a two-set deficit to force a fifth, but the Panthers were able to hold off the comeback attempt and pull out a 27-25, 25-13, 22-25, 21-25, 15-9 final.
Rivera Modesto turned in her best match with 23 kills and a .228 hitting percentage. Cabo set 34 assists and Latin etched 15 digs.
Alcorn's hitting percentages were the tale of the tap. The Lady Braves hit .083 and .031 in the first two frames before winning the next two with respective .250 and .406 marks. Though in the deciding set, Alcorn hit -.100.
The Lady Braves were down 24-20 in the opening set before coming back with two kills from Rivera Modesto to tie it 24-24. Still even at 25, Alcorn committed a service error, followed by an attack error to end the frame.
After dropping the second 25-13, the Lady Braves regrouped for the third. They built an 11-5 advantage early on three service aces and a few PVAMU attack errors. After the Panthers came back to tie it at 15, Alcorn punched back with a 4-0 run to stay up 19-15. PVAMU came within one, 23-22, but a service error and attack error by the Panthers ended their own threat.
Alcorn led most of the way in the fourth before the Panthers came back to tie it 20-20. A ball handling error gave the Lady Braves a slight 22-21 edge, and they won the final three points all on kills by Rivera Modesto, assisted by Cabo.
It was unfortunately dejavu for Alcorn in the fifth as the team fell behind 8-0 in the deciding frame for the second straight match. The Lady Braves slowly chipped away with a kill by junior
Wanya Morris, and got the deficit to 12-7. Though, the Panthers closed the match strong and forced a pair of Alcorn errors to close it out.
#FearTheBrave
