BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The Texas A&M volleyball team (7-3) needed just three sets (25-21, 27-25, 25-22) to top the nationally-ranked WKU Hilltoppers (11-2) on Friday night at Diddle Arena.
A&M’s straight-set victory over the Hilltoppers marked the first time since 2018 that WKU had been swept by an unranked opponent. The Aggies hit for .452 in the match – their highest hitting percentage since hitting at a .481 clip at Auburn in 2015.
Caroline Meuth led the way, hitting at a career-high .615 clip finishing with 17 kills. Logan Lednicky turned in her fifth-straight double-digit kill performance, recording 12. The Aggies out blocked the Hilltoppers, 6-2, led by rookie Ifenna Cos-Okpalla, who finished with three.
The Aggies erased a five-point deficit in the opening frame courtesy of an 8-0 run in the final points, giving A&M a 25-21 opening-set win. After trailing early, an ace and second kill from Lednicky brought momentum on A&M’s side, as kills from Bowser and Meuth brought the Aggies back within two. WKU jumped out to a 17-12 advantage, but a pair of kills from Karakasi and three from Meuth kept the Maroon & White’s run alive, giving A&M the 25-21 victory.
WKU took an early lead again in the second, but back-to-back kills from Bowser brought the Aggies back within three, trailing 11-8. The Hilltoppers pulled ahead, 16-10, for their largest lead of the set, before a block by Lednicky and Cos-Okpalla helped A&M cut into its deficit. A four-point surge by the Aggies brought the Maroon & White within one, as back-to-back kills from Lednicky leveled the set at 23-all. The rookie reached double-digit kills for the fifth-straight match, pushing A&M to set point, before miscommunication by WKU handed the Aggies the set, 27-25.
A trio of kills from three different Aggies made it 6-5 in favor of A&M in the deciding set. A kill from Cos-Okpalla leveled the score at 12-all, before an ace from Elena Karakasi helped the Maroon & White keep its lead. After falling behind, Cos-Okpalla’s fifth kill and a kill on the outside from Ciera Hecht created separation for the Aggies. Back-to-back kills from Meuth gave A&M the 22-19 advantage. The Hilltoppers used a timeout with the Aggies at set point, but a service error by WKU handed A&M the set, 25-22.
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The Aggies wrap up…
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