Lady Buffs squeak by tough Aggie team
LAWTON, Oklahoma (October 27) – Did you hear that? That is the sound of West Texas A&M fans breathing a sigh of relief. This afternoon their Lady Buffs (27-7, 11-0 LSC), ranked #15 in the nation and #1 in the region, were given a run for their money against a hot Cameron Aggie (12-14, 5-5 LSC) volleyball team. In the match of the season, CU lost to WTAMU, 3-2, in an extremely close contest. The match lasted nearly three hours and was scored 33-35, 30-27, 33-31, 27-30, 9-15.
“I think we are a better team and it would have been nice to pull of the big upset,” Head Coach John Haroun said. “Our defense was just crazy. Digging 132 balls? I have never even heard of that.” Cameron put together a very solid performance, one that almost felt like a victory afterwards… almost. The Aggies recorded some very impressive numbers, including the aforementioned 132 defensive digs. Cameron also attacked the net 258 total times.
Game one was nearly awarded to Cameron, as the Aggies were unsuccessful on three match points. CU came out strong in games two and three and was on the verge of the victory. The Lady Buffs tied it up after game four, and had simply too much momentum in game five. “I think game two said a lot about the character of our team,” Coach Haroun said. “We just dominated the second game.”
The last time the Aggies and Lady Buffs faced off was in last year’s Lone Star Conference Championship match when WTAMU came away with a 3-1 victory (22-30, 35-33, 19-30, 13-30) for the LSC title.
Freshman middle blocker Ruth Johnson had an outstanding game, posting a team-high 20 kills. She attacked the net 60 times with 9 errors for a .183 attack percentage. She also had 3 defensive digs and a block-solo. “Ruth didn’t play like a freshman today,” Coach Haroun said. “I thought it was rather fitting and kind of a passing of the baton.”
The ‘passing’ Coach Haroun was referring to was between Johnson and Cameron senior outside hitter Fernanda Queiroz. Queiroz, the team’s lone senior, played her final home match as an Aggie today capping off one of the greatest volleyball careers in CU history.
Queiroz finished the match with 15 kills on a team-high 83 attacks. She also totaled 8 assists, 2 service aces, 22 defensive digs, 2 block-solos, and 3 block-assists. Prior to the match her teammates presented her with a bouquet of flowers for the team’s annual Senior Day ceremonies. Sophomore right-side hitter Lindsay Paziuk also had a great game offensively with 16 kills on 43 total attacks with just 6 errors for a .233 attack percentage. Paziuk’s 3 assists, 27 defensive digs, 2 block-solos, 2 block-assists, and team-high 3 service aces also contributed to the victory.
Leading the defense today was junior setter Haley Hatch who recorded 30 defensive digs. She also led the team with a .500 attack percentage after totaling a single kill on 2 attacks. Additionally she finished with 3 assists. Sophomore setter Laura Ellerbrock led the team in assists with 57 today. She also recorded 4 kills on 12 attacks, 19 defensive digs, and a single service ace.
“This is definitely a match to build off of,” Coach Haroun said. “Hopefully we can take care of business in our final two matches and get ready for the Lone Star Conference tournament.” Cameron travels to Abilene, Texas, this Thursday to take on the Wildcats of Abilene Christian at 7:00pm. They then take on the Rambelles of Angelo State University next Saturday, at 2:00pm, in the final regular season match of the season.
Prior to today’s match, the Aggies were in 6th place in the Lone Star Conference standings. The top eight teams in the conference make the LSC postseason championship tournament. Depending on how the rest of today’s matches play out, Cameron should just have to win one of their final two matches to clinch postseason berth.
