Playoff-bound Aggies swept by 'Cats
ABILENE, Texas (November 1) – Having already clinched a berth in the Lone Star Conference Postseason tournament, the Cameron Aggie volleyball team (12-15, 5-6 LSC) hit the road today for the first of their final two regular season matches. The first stop on the trip was Abilene where the Aggies took on the Wildcats of Abilene Christian University (14-12, 8-3 LSC). On ACU’s Senior Night, the Aggies were swept by the Wildcats, 3-0 (18-30, 24-30, 28-30).
“We were very flat tonight. We were lethargic, made a bunch of unforced errors, and just didn’t play well,” Head Coach John Haroun said. “We don’t want to take any credit away from ACU; they came out strong and we tried to react but couldn’t get any momentum. We did not seem focused.” For the match, the Aggies had a team attack percentage of just .021 and a total of 41 unforced errors. The team was down by as much as ten points in the first game, but actually held the lead in games two and three. Not a single Aggie recorded a double-digit kill total in the match that lasted just an hour and twenty-five minutes.
“The way we trounced Eastern New Mexico is the way we got trounced tonight,” Coach Haroun said. “I think we were almost content with what we did against West Texas A&M.” Cameron swept ENMU 3-0 a week ago in a very one-sided match, but then lost to nationally ranked (#15) WTAMU in a five-game thriller last Saturday.
Sophomore middle hitter Sydney Stewart finished the match with the team’s best attack percentage (.400) after recording 5 kills on 10 attacks win a single error. She also totaled 2 block-assists, a block-solo, and an assist. Junior libero Haley Hatch led the team defensively tonight, recording a team-high 17 defensive digs. Hatch also recorded a single assist in the match.
Sophomore setter Laura Ellerbrock finished with 25 assists, a team-high. She was just one of four Aggies to finish the match with an assist. Ellerbrock also contributed 6 defensive digs and a service ace. As mentioned previously, the Aggies have one more regular season match before the LSC Championship Tournament, which begins next Thursday in Canyon, Texas. Depending on how their final match goes, Cameron could be ranked anywhere from #5 to #8. The top eight teams in the conference make the postseason tournament.
“I think that if we aren’t prepared and focused and ready to go, then we are not a good enough team to win. We need to work on the mental aspect and we have to get ready to play every match; we weren’t ready today,” Coach Haroun said. “It’s a lesson that should hit home and resonate hard today.” The Aggies travel to San Angelo, Texas, on Saturday to take on the Rambelles of Angelo State University. The match begins at 2:00pm and is the final regular season match of the season for both teams. The Rambelles have lost their last ten matches.
