ADA – The East Central University volleyball team split the final two home matches of the 2014 season, earning a 3-2 (26-24, 17-25, 18-25, 25-16, 15-9) Great American Conference win over Henderson State and falling 0-3 (19-25, 22-25, 17-25) to Dallas Baptist in non-conference action.

Photo Gallery vs. Henderson State
Photo Gallery vs. Dallas Baptist

The Tigers (5-24, 1-13 GAC) were led by junior Sarah Simpson, who tallied 24 kills and 17 digs in the two matches.  Junior Hayley Gerken added 14 kills for the day, with eight block assists.  Freshman Mackenzie Davis led ECU with nine block assists and added eight kills.  Defensively freshman Lily Porsa led the Tigers with 35 digs.

ECU has one match left in the 2014 season, as they travel to face Mid-America Christian, Thursday, Nov. 6 at 7:30 p.m.

ECU 3, HSU 2
The Tigers opened the day with a 3-2 (26-24, 17-25, 18-25, 25-16, 15-9) win over Henderson State in the final conference match of the 2014 season.

ECU was led by junior Sarah Simpson, who tallied 14 kills and 12 digs for her 11^th double-double of the season.  Sophomore Jessica Sullivan had a strong day at the net with junior Hayley Gerken.  Sullivan garnered four block assists, while Gerken added seven.

The first set was a close battle, with both teams trading points and runs throughout and forcing six tie scores and four lead changes.  The Reddies (4-25, 0-14 GAC) had taken a 13-18 advantage with a 5-0 run, but the Tigers fought back and slowly mounted a come-back.  While trailing 18-22, ECU went on a 3-0 run to get within one (21-22).  The teams traded the next three serves before the Tigers finished the set with a 4-0 run to claim the 26-24 win.

HSU started out strong in the second set, taking the first five points.  While ECU fought back to take an 11-8 lead, the Reddies quickly tied the set at 13, with a 3-0 run, and added a 5-0 run to regain the advantage.  That was all the momentum they needed as they took the set 17-25.

The Tigers started out with a 5-1 advantage in the third set, but quickly saw HSU tie the set with a 4-0 run.  The teams traded runs until the scoreboard read 13-14 in favor of the Reddies.  That is when HSU used a 9-2 run to take control on the way to the 18-25 victory.

It was almost all Tigers in the fourth set, after jumping out to a 5-3 advantage.  The closest ECU let the Reddies get was ties at five and 12.  However, after the 12-all tie the Tigers used a 4-0 run to take control of the scoreboard.  ECU increased the lead to as many as nine, with a 7-0 run, before forcing the fifth set with a 25-16 win.

ECU again came out strong in the fifth set, taking the first five points.  HSU countered with a 4-0 run to get within one (5-4) and then used another 4-0 run to take a 6-8 advantage.  However, that is when the Tigers went into overdrive and rattled off the next seven points for a 13-8 advantage.  The Reddies took the next point, but ECU finished the set and match on a 2-0 run for the 15-9 win.

DBU 3, ECU 0
Junior Sarah Simpson tallied 10 of her 24 kills for the day against the Patriots (10-15), while adding five digs and two block assists.  Gerken tallied seven kills and a .333 (7k-1e-18ta) hitting percentage in the match.

The opening set saw DBU take an early 0-3 lead and never let the score get closer than two points (2-4) the rest of the set.  The Patriots used several small runs and a 6-0 run in the middle of the set to keep the momentum in their favor and earn the 19-25 win.

The second set was much closer with 13 tie scores and six lead changes before a winner could be decided.  The final tie came at 18-all when DBU used a 4-0 run to take control for good.  The Tigers held off two set points before falling 22-25.

The teams started out close again in the third set, but after ties at two through five, the Patriots used a 2-0 run to gain the needed advantage.  DBU added a 6-0 run in the middle of the set for a 7-15 lead and pushed through for the 17-25 win.