SMU Volleyball Finishes With Win Over Baylor

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DALLAS (SMU) – Courtney Manning posted six blocks to lead SMU to a 3-1 victory (25-22, 17-25, 25-12, 25-20) over regionally-ranked Baylor in the season finale, finishing her career second all-time in Conference USA history with 579 blocks in four seasons at SMU.

Caroline Young scored a match-high 16 kills with five blocks, and Olivia Bailey capped of the season with her ninth double-double, recording 42 assists and 14 digs. Manning and Maddie Lozano each finished with seven kills and six blocks.

The Mustangs kept the match from going to a fifth set with a comeback win in the fourth. Trailing by three early in the fourth, SMU tied the match and later gained a three-point lead of its own with back-to-back kills by freshmen Cailin Bula and Abbey Bybel, giving SMU a 17-14 lead. The Mustangs stretched the lead to as many as six points before Young ended the match with a kill to give SMU the 25-20 win in the fourth.

SMU (11-20) took control of the match in the third set, dominating the Bears (20-12) from the start and finishing on a 13-7 run for a 25-12 win. The Mustangs went on a 5-1 run coming out of the locker room and stretched the lead to eight, taking a 12-4 advantage to break the 1-1 tie in the match.

Baylor evened the match in the second with a 25-17 victory after SMU held off a late charge by Baylor in the first set for a 25-22 win. The Mustangs took a four-point lead in the first set, 16-12, and stretched it to six, 23-17, but Baylor scored five of the next six points before a Kayci Evans service error gave SMU the win.

Bybel finished the game with nine kills and Bula scored eight kills with five digs and four blocks. Manning ended the season with 104 blocks, posting at least 100 in all four seasons. Young finished the season with 397 kills, and Bailey had 980 assists and 240 digs.