Box Score JONESBORO, ARK. – Appalachian State volleyball advances in the Sun Belt Conference tournament after an exciting five-set win to upset the UT Arlington Mavericks (21-25, 25-23, 25-22, 21-25, 15-11).
App State completes their fourteenth five-set match of the season with a win in the first round of the SBC tournament.
Kara Spicer boosted the Mountaineers with 15 kills on the day.
Sydney Farthing kept the ball off the court with 16 digs.
Cassidy Stephenson had an impressive performance at the net with eight blocks, and
Ashlyn Brown had 51 assists.
In the first set, App State took the lead after a score of 7-7. Attack errors from the Mavericks kept the Mountaineers ahead until the Mavericks tied it up again at 18-18. UT Arlington gained the lead and pushed onward to earn the win 21-25.
App State started the second set with a 3-0 run with a kill each from
Cassidy Stephenson and
Emma Longley. Errors allowed the Mavericks to catch up, but a kill from
Courtney Sullivan and two service aces from
Emma Reilly allowed the Mountaineers to narrow UT Arlington's lead.
Kara Spicer stepped up her game with three kills before tying the score up again at 16-16. The Mountaineers earned points late in the second set thanks to help from
Emma Longley,
Ashlyn Brown,
Lexi Kohut and
Kara Spicer. App State won the second set 25-23.
In the third set, App State kept the lead after a score of 5-4. Qiana Canete put the Mavericks back on the scoreboard, but
Emma Longley's five kills in the third set helped App State defeat UT Arlington 25-22.
Lexi Kohut had four kills in the fourth set while
Courtney Sullivan earned three kills and
Cassidy Stephenson earned two. The Mavericks pulled ahead after a score of 17-17 to force a fifth set 21-25.
The fifth set started off strong for the Mountaineers with a 6-0 run after a kill from
Kara Spicer sparked five consecutive errors from the Mavericks.
Kara Spicer had five kills in this final set and ended the match with a kill to make the score 15-11.
The Mountaineers will continue their tournament play on Friday, Nov. 17 at 6 p.m. EST against #3 Louisiana in Jonesboro, Ark. and on ESPN3.
