Aggies forge split in Regional Challenge
Click here for complete results from the 2003 Southwest Regional Challenge.
LAWTON, Okla. (Sept. 20) -- Despite a pair of slow starts and some stiff competition, the Cameron women's volleyball team managed to split four matches at the Southwest Regional Challenge.
Cameron defeated Drury and Incarnate Word before losing to St. Mary's and 15th-ranked Rockhurst in the 12-team event, which featured 19 matches between teams from the Lone Star Conference and Heartland Conference.
Friday's action provided a two come-from-behind victories for the Aggies. Cameron fell into an 0-2 match deficit before storming back to defeat Drury 3-2 on Friday afternoon and spotted Incarnate Word the first set of the match before rallying to win the next three games in a 3-1 victory over the Crusaders. Junior middle blocker Nicole Reinhart led a solid Aggie defense with six blocks against Drury. Reinhart also was one of four Cameron players to record double-digit kills in the match, with 14 and had a match-high .419 attack percentage. Senior Kelsey Kosick led all players with 30 kills in the match, while Morgan Meyer and Taran Turner added 21 and 18 kills, respectively.
Freshman setter Vicki Ibarra also posted a season-high 75 assists in the match, falling just one short of the team single-match record set by Stacey Fogle in 1991.
Cameron lost the first two sets against Drury by identical scores of 28-30, but won the next two by the same score of 30-25. The Aggies were clining to a slim 13-12 advantage in the fifth set before back-to-back kills by Tayler Turner gave Cameron the match.
Friday night's match with Incarnate Word also saw the Aggies stumble out of the gates. The Crusaders used an early 6-0 run to cruise to a 30-23 win in the first set. But Meyer came alive for the Aggies in the second set, sparking Cameron to a second straight come-from-behind win. CU won the final three sets 30-18, 30-21, 30-25.
Meyer finished with a match-high 22 kills and an impressive .432 attack percentage. Kosick added 21 kills and four of Cameron's eight service aces in the match. Reinhart added five blocks and junior libero Jenny Head chipped in a match-high 14 digs.
Against St. Mary's on Saturday, the Aggies were locked up with the Rattlers in all three sets. But each time, St. Mary's used a late rally to take the upper hand.
A 5-0 St. Mary's run and three late Cameron errors gave the Rattlers a 30-21 Game 1 win.
Cameron recorded six team blocks and appeared to be on its way to knotting the match score following back-to-back blocks that produced a 25-20 Aggie lead in the second set. But four straight Cameron hitting errors and a pair of St. Mary's aces helped give the Rattlers a commanding 2-0 lead in the match. The Aggies again played strong early in the third set, but St. Mary's used two of its 11 service aces in the match to ignite a 6-0 run midway through the set. Back-to-back aces later in the game gave the Rattlers a 25-18 advantage, allowing St. Mary's to cruise to the easy win.
Rockhurst completed a 4-0 showing in the Southwest Regional Challenge, posting scores of 30-23, 30-25, 30-17 in the win over the Aggies.
The Lady Hawks hit a sizzling .435 attack percentage in the match, proving worthy of their No. 15 national ranking. Jessica Shepler and Regiane Manzato combined for more than half of Rockhurst's 61 kills in the match and the setting tandem of Deanna Shelton and Kecia Jennings each posted 24 assists to lead the 'Hawks.
Kosick and Reinhart led the Aggies with 12 kills apiece. Reinhart continued her solid weekend play with a .478 attack percentage and two blocks, but it wasn't enough to combat the athletic Rockhurst attack.
Cameron (8-7) will have several days to recouperate before returning to action. The Aggies will take part in the annual Lone Star Conference crossover beginning Friday in Wichita Falls, Texas. Cameron will face Eastern New Mexico on Friday at 7 p.m., then take on Texas A&M-Kingsville at 1 p.m., Saturday. The Aggies will wrap up action in the crossover with a showdown against 21st-ranked West Texas A&M on Saturday at 5. All matches in the event will be played at D.L. Ligon Colesium on the campus of Midwestern State University.
