ADA, Okla. – The East Central University volleyball team took care of business Thursday night, sweeping the University of Arkansas-Monticello in straight sets, 25-21, 25-18 and 25-12, to open its home two-match stretch against Arkansas opponents.
With the victory, the Tigers improve to 7-11 overall and 2-4 in Great American Conference play, setting up a quick turnaround as they prepare to host Southern Arkansas University on Friday at 4 p.m. inside the Kerr Activities Center.
ECU established an early lead in the opening set, pulling ahead 16-9 before Arkansas-Monticello capitalized on some Tiger miscues to fight back and even the score at 20-20. A kill from
Seran Eran sparked a four-point run that gave ECU the separation it needed. An attack error by the Blossoms sealed the 25-21 set victory and put the Tigers ahead 1-0.
The second set followed a similar pattern, with the Blossoms keeping the score close and trailing by just one at 17-16. ECU found its rhythm down the stretch, however, closing the set on an 8-2 run to claim a 25-18 win and take a two-set advantage.
The Tigers delivered their most dominant performance in the third set, edging ahead 6-5 before stringing together six consecutive points to build a 12-5 lead. ECU continued to pull away with another 6-0 run, extending its advantage to 23-11. A kill by
Jadyn Rambo and a final Arkansas-Monticello attack error secured the 25-12 set win and completed the sweep.
ECU finished with 38 kills and a .242 hitting percentage, while holding the Blossoms to 26 kills and a .037 clip. The Tigers also held the advantage in assists (34-23), digs (53-41), blocks (8-5), and aces (5-2).
Reagan Hutchinson led the Tigers with 10 kills, hitting .304, and added six digs.
Addison Iman followed with nine kills, while
Lana Wright contributed six kills and three blocks. Eran added five kills and three blocks, and
Emily Pena paced the offense with 30 assists while recording 13 digs for another double-double.
Bryleigh Wallace led ECU defensively with 13 digs.
