CANYON, Texas – University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Volleyball opened the 2021 season with a pair of wins at the BritKare Lady Buff Classic Friday, defeating Fort Lewis, 3-2, and Southwestern Oklahoma State, 3-1.
The Lady Lions will conclude the tournament Saturday by taking on Adams State at 9 a.m. and host West Texas A&M at 4:30 p.m. Live stats and video links are available at uafortsmithlions.com.
UAFS 3, Fort Lewis 2 (25-17, 22-25, 25-17, 17-25, 15-13)
Setter Chloe Price made her presence felt in her UAFS debut, racking up 35 assists, 12 digs, seven kills and four blocks as the Lions survived a five-set thriller in their season opener against Fort Lewis College.
Price spread around her assists, with six other Lions registering four or more kills. Right-side hitter Courtney Crownover and outside hitter Paola Fragalle each finished with 10 kills, while middle blocker Chyra Thompson added eight kills.
After leading the Lone Star Conference in opponent hitting percentage last season, the Lion defense picked up right where it left off. UAFS held the Skyhawks a .091 attack percentage for the match and held them to -.033 and -.118 in sets one and three, respectively.
Libero Lexy Lewis led UAFS with 22 digs, while Fragalle tallied 16.
UAFS had a decisive advantage at the net, recording 12 blocks to just two for the Skyhawks. Middle blocker Savannah Wharton had a team-high six blocks, including a pair of clutch blocks in set five with middle blocker Hannah Holland.
Fort Lewis carried momentum into set three, jumping out to a quick 6-0 lead, but UAFS answered with a 9-0 run of its own, taking advantage of seven Skyhawk errors and then not relinquishing the lead.
Leading 13-10 in set four, the Skyhawks broke the set open with a 6-0 run for a 19-10 advantage. The Lions responded with a 5-0 spurt, but were unable to complete the comeback.
Tied at 12 in the fifth set, Holland broke the tie with a kill and then teamed up with Wharton on the second of the aforementioned blocks for match point. Fragalle then gave the Lions the win with her second set-winning kill of the match.
UAFS 3, SWOSU 1 (25-20, 24-26, 26-24, 25-15)
Outside hitter Reagan Macha recorded a career-high 19 kills as UAFS earned a hard-fought, four-set win in the nightcap over Southwestern Oklahoma State University.
Macha led three Lady Lions in double figures, joined by middle blocker Hannah Holland and outside hitter Paola Fragalle with 11 and 10, respectively. Holland had an attack percentage of .471.
After a pair of back-and-forth sets, UAFS put its foot on the gas in set four, racing out to a 10-3 lead. Macha and Fragalle each had two kills during the run. UAFS was never threatened in the set and led by as many as 11 at 21-10.
The block was once again a strength for the Lions, racking up 16 blocks. Middle blocker Chyra Thompson led the way with nine blocks – all assisted – while three others had three blocks apiece.
UAFS held the Bulldogs to just a .054 attack percentage in the three set wins, compared to the Bulldogs hitting .218 in the set they won. Libero Lexy Lewis led UAFS with 24 digs, with her day total of 46 moving her into ninth on the all-time digs list with 708 career digs.
Fragalle earned her second double-double of the day with 10 digs, while Macha added 14 for a double-double, as well. Setter Chloe Price dished out 41 assists to go with nine digs.
