Box Score

CONWAY, Ark. – The Northwestern State volleyball team fought hard and gave top-seeded Texas State a scare after a big-time third set performance, but just couldn't complete the upset on Friday in a first-round match at the Southland Conference Tournament at the Farris Center – 25-14, 25-21, 22-25 and 25-17.

“We have kids from big programs who expect to win,” said co-head coach Hugh Hernesman. “Our players have been in big moments before and I never felt that this was too big of a stage for them.”

Kelly Jimenez and Emily Sweet each posted double-doubles for NSU (10-20, 6-10), but big blocks and steady attacks from Texas State (25-7, 15-1), who has won 16 consecutive conference matches, was the decisive factor.

“We might be young and possibly overmatched at times, but we are very talented and fight hard the whole way through,” Hernesman said. “It's also not just about our effort, but our ability to make changes and respond. We played smart and hard today, and that's a credit to all our players.”

Jimenez ended with 11 kills and 15 digs, while Sweet had 41 assists and 10 digs. It was the 11th double-double on the year for Jimenez, and ninth for Sweet. The 15 digs from Jimenez also marked a career-high.

“Sweet always stands out for us; she ran a really good offense today and got our hitters open looks,” Hernesman said. “Kelly played really nice defense. I was impressed with some of the reads she was making and executed everything that we wanted from the scouting report.”

Freshman of the Year and Second-Team All-Conference winner Stacey DiFrancesco scored a match-high 17 kills, and came one dig short of a double-double with nine digs. She also rejected three blocks in the match.

“Stacey knows she has to produce kills for us. She never at any point looked scared and just kept the foot on the gas. It was great to see her staying aggressive and really going after it the whole time,” Hernesman said.

In the middle, Mackenzie Neely and Vanessa Coleman each tallied eight kills, as Neely also stuffed a team-high four blocks.

“We wanted to attack more in the middle, especially in transition, and both Mackenzie and Vanessa got some pretty good looks today,” Hernesman said. “Our middles loosened up our blocks on the outside which allowed Stacey and Kelly to get some better looks.”

In the back row, Keelie Arneson dug up a team-high 15 attacks, and Jessica Guttierrez had six.

“Keelie passed well and made a lot of great scramble-plays. She definitely gives our hitters good swings when we are out-of-system and when Sweet has to take the initial dig,” Hernesman said.

For Texas State, SLC Player of the Year Amber Calhoun killed 10 and hit at a .444 mark, while Caleig McCorquodale finished with a double-double with 34 assists and a match-high 20 digs. Ashlee Hilbun led the team in kills with 12 (.429).

The Lady Demons held a slight 7-6 advantage in the first set when the Bobcats took five in a row to grab the lead, 11-7. NSU came back to cut the deficit to 13-10, but Texas State reeled off six in a row to extend its lead to 19-10. The Bobcats were then able to close it out, 25-15.

DiFrancesco crushed seven kills in the set to keep the Lady Demons competitive.

NSU got off to a hot start in the second, up 8-4 after a block and kill by Coleman. Though, the Bobcats went on a 6-0 run to jump ahead, 10-8. The Lady Demons were still in striking distance after a Neely spike kept them down just 16-12, but Texas State went on a 4-1 streak, forcing NSU to call timeout down 20-13.

Still trailing 23-17, Neely sparked a 3-0 run with a kill and block to make it 23-20 with Johnson serving, but the Bobcats were able to finish it after some big attacks, 25-21.

DiFrancesco pounded four kills to lead NSU in the second, while Sweet passed for 10 assists and Arneson dug up five.

Trailing 8-7 to start the third, Jimenez and Coleman each smashed a kill to propel a 3-0 run and get NSU ahead, 10-8. After the Bobcats tied it 10-10, the teams were deadlocked at 14-14 until a kill by Coleman and an ace by DiFrancesco put NSU ahead, 16-14.

Texas State came back to tie it 21-21, but a monster spike by DiFrancesco got the Lady Demons back up to a 23-21 lead. The Bobcats took the next point to make it 23-22, but DiFrancesco hammered another to earn set point, and NSU ended an impressive set 25-22 on a Neely kill.

Neely and Jimenez each recorded a team-high five kills in the third, while DiFrancesco registered three clutch ones near the end.

“We were proud that we kept fighting even after things didn't go our way after the first couple sets. We made a couple changes going into the third set and executed some of our tactical changes really well,” Hernesman said.

Down 12-7 to start the fourth, a pair of kills by Jimenez started a 3-0 run to cut the lead to 12-10. Though, NSU was forced to call a timeout after superior blocking by Texas State extending its lead to 17-12. The Lady Demons fought hard all the way to the end, but the Bobcats kept their foot on the pedal and closed it out, 25-17.

“Experiencing the atmosphere of this tournament is a great building block for our team,” Hernesman said. “To be competitive against such a great program gives our girls a lot of confidence moving forward.”

The Lady Demons will be back in action in the spring when they look to continue improving in exhibition matches. Dates and times are still to be announced.