ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Volleyball opened the 2022 season with a pair of wins over Auburn-Montgomery and Ouachita Baptist at the Reddie-Tiger Invitational.
The Lady Lions swept the Warhawks in the opener, 25-10, 25-15, 33-31 before defeating the Tigers 25-23, 25-19, 24-26, 25-18.
UAFS concludes the invitational Saturday by playing Quincy University at 9 a.m. and Kentucky Wesleyan at 2:30 p.m.
UAFS 3, AUM 0 (25-10, 25-15, 33-31)
The Lions hit .282 as they earned a sweep in their season opener over the Warhawks. Three players racked up double figure kills, led by 13 from outside hitter Reagan Macha. Outside hitter Chloe Alderson and middle blocker Kaelyn McDonald each added 10 kills. McDonald hit a team-high .471.
UAFS dominated in the first set, hitting .297 while holding AUM to -.025. Leading 5-4, the Lions broke the set open by using a 10-1 run to lead 15-5. Macha had four kills during the run. UAFS then closed the set with another 5-0 for a 1-0 lead.
The Lions hit even better in set two, hitting .394 with 16 kills. Trailing 8-7, McDonald fueled an 8-0 run with a pair of kills for a 15-8 advantage. A 5-0 later in the set extended the lead to as many as 10 points.
UAFS trailed for much of the third set before taking the lead late with a pair of 4-0 runs. However, the Warhawks scored four of five points to take a 24-23 lead. Neither team was able to break through until the Lions got a kill from setter Chloe Price and a ball handling error from AUM.
Price and Macha each recorded double-doubles, with Price totaling 33 assists and 11 digs. She added five kills, as well. Macha hit .345 on her 13 kills and added 14 digs.
Libero Lauren Weber paced the defensive effort with 22 digs as the Lions held the Warhawks to .087 hitting for the match. Defensive specialist Taylor Lintz tallied nine digs.
UAFS 3, OBU 1 (25-23, 25-19, 24-26, 25-18)
UAFS completed an opening day sweep with a 3-1 win over the host Tigers. Alderson led the Lions with 13 kills while completing a double-double with 14 digs.
McDonald achieved double-digit kills for a second straight match with 10 kills, while middle blocker Angelina Hardison hit .318 with 10 kills.
UAFS jumped out to an early lead in set one before the Tigers clawed back and had the set tied at 22-22. Middle blocker Chyra Thompson then had a pair of kills in the final three points to give the Lions a set lead.
The Lions then hit .350 in set two for a 2-0 advantage, but the Tigers rallied for a 24-26 win in set three to extend the match.
In the third set, UAFS broke a 3-3 tie with a 7-0 run to pull away early. They later used a 7-1 run to lead 21-14 before putting the match away.
Weber led four players to reach double figure digs with 19, with Lintz tallying 12 and Price 10. Price dished out 44 assists.
Thompson would add seven kills on a .400 attack percentage and matched Hardison with six blocks each.
