Nov. 19, 2010
Final Stats
HUNTSVILLE, Tex. - Emily Shearin had 10 kills and five blocks, helping No. 4 UT Arlington defeat No. 5 Sam Houston State 3-1 Friday night at Johnson Coliseum in the first round of the Southland Conference Tournament.
The Mavericks remained the hottest team in the conference behind their reliable defense, tallying 85 digs earning a 25-19, 27-25, 20-25, 25-18 victory on the Bearkats' home court.
"From the last two times we played Sam Houston, I knew this was going to be a big battle and it was," UTA coach Diane Seymour said."Hats off to the Bearkats. We just came up with a few more digs at the right time. I'm very pleased with my players' performance today.
With the win, UT Arlington ran its win streak to eight matches, marking the longest the program has enjoyed since 2002 and the longest under Seymour.
The Mavericks (17-14) now advance to the second round of the SLC Tournament where they will face top-seed Central Arkansas at Johnson Coliseum Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.
UT Arlington took control of the first set by scoring five straight points after the two teams were tied at 10. The Mavericks defense put its stamp on the first set, posting 29 digs behind eight from Kendall Whitson and holding the Bearkats to a .038 attack percentage.
In Game 2, UTA again seemed like it was headed to a comfortable win before Sam Houston State rallied to take a 23-22 lead. However, Emily Shearin had back-to-back kills and the Mavericks earned the 27-25 win on their third set-point.
The Bearkats (15-17) bounced back to take the third set before the Mavericks finished them off in Game 4.
Shearin led the way with her efficient attack. She finished the match with a .474 hitting percentage. It marked Shearin's second consecutive strong showing in the SLC Tournament. She posted a career-high 17 kills in the first round last year against Lamar.
"I guess I'm just pumped up," Shearin said. "I want to win for my team. It all starts with Raegan and me being up for her. I had a lot of confidence today and I know it helps out my team."
Amanda Aguilera posted team highs of 17 kills and 19 digs, earning her 14th double-double of the season.
Whitson matcher her career high with 16 digs, finishing as one of four UTA players to post 16-plus digs. Libero Alicia Shaffer added 18 more digs.
"We've been digging a lot of balls lately and I know how scrappy Sam Houston is," Seymour said. "The biggest sign we were going to play well today was when we started to dig balls to target. That allowed our offense to get going."
Bianca Sauls finished one kill shy of a double-double by racking up nine kills and 18 digs. She also had five blocks.
The offense spread the wealth behind the distribution of Raegan Daniel, who finished with 46 assists in the win.
Christy Driscoll added five kills and five blocks. Tara Frantz contributed with six kills.
Carli Kolbe led the Bearkats with 23 kills and 22 digs.
